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THE 

LIFE    AND    LETTERS 

OF 

JAMES    WOLFE 


THE  MEMOIRS  OF  THE  DUCHESSE  DE  DINO.  After- 
wards Duchesse  de  Talleyrand  and  de  Sagan,  1831-1835. 
Edited  with  Note  and  a  Biographical  Index  by  Princesse 
Radziwill  (nee  Castellane).  Translated  from  the  French 
by  G.  W.  Chrystal.  One  volume,  demy  8vo.  With 
photogravure  frontispiece.     Price  10s.  net. 

THE  TRIBUNAL  OF  THE  TERROR.  By  G.  Lenotre, 
author  of  "The  Flight  of  Marie  Antoinette,"  "The  Last 
Days  of  Marie  Antoinette,"  etc.  Translated  from  the 
French  by  Frederic  Lees,  Officier  d' Instruction  Publique. 
One  volume,  demy  8vo.  With  many  illustrations.  Price 
10s.  net. 

THE  RETURN  OF  LOUIS  XVIII.  By  Gilbert  Stenger. 
Translated  from  the  French  by  Mrs.  Rudolph  Stawell. 
One  volume,  demy  8vo.  With  many  illustrations.  Price 
10s.  net. 

THE  GREAT  FRENCH  REVOLUTION,  1789-1793.  By 
P.  Kropotkin,  author  of  *'  Mutual  Aid,"  etc.,  etc.  Trans- 
lated from  the  French  by  N.  F.  Dryhurst.  One  volume, 
demy  8vo.     Price  6s.  net. 

A  COTSWOLD  FAMILY,  HICKS  AND  HICKS  BEACH. 
By  Mrs.  William  Hicks  Beach.  One  volume,  demy  8vo. 
With  many  illustrations.     Price  12a.  6d, 


London:    WILLIAM  HEINEMANN 
21,  Bedford  Street,  W.C. 


..,.j/o<^ 


fg'n-i'./X'n-c^' 


THE 


LIFE  AND  LETTERS 


OF 


JAMES  WOLFE 


BY 


BECKLES    WILLSON 

AUTHOR    OF 

*THK  Hudson's  bay  company,*  *the  romance  of  Canada,*  etc. 


"  Being  of  the  profession  of  arms,  I  would  seek  all  occasions  to  serve  " 


rriTH  MANY  ILLUSTRATIONS  AND  PLANS 


LONDON 
WILLIAM    HEINEMANN 

1909 


Copyright^  Londotty  1909,  hy  ff^illiam  Heinemann 


To 

Lieut  .-Colonel 
C.   A.    M.  WARDE,  D.L.,   J.  P. 

OP   SQUERRYES    COURT 

WITH    THE   NAME   OF   WHOSE   ANCESTOR   THAT 

OP   WOLFE   WILI.   EVER   BE   INSEPARABLY    CONNECTED 

I    GRATEFULLY    INSCRIBE    THIS    BOOK 


PREFACE 

The  singular  privilege  has  fallen  to  my  lot  of  being  so  familiar, 
through  birth  and  residence,  with  localities,  objects  and  writings 
associated  with  the  subject  of  this  memoir  that  I  can  scarcely 
recall  a  time  when  the  man  has  not  been  an  intimate — when  I  did 
not  feel  I  knew  this  tall,  battle-worn  young  soldier  far  better  than 
many  whose  forms  moved  about  me  and  with  whom  I  spoke  in  the 
flesh. 

I  have  sought  as  far  as  possible  to  let  the  letters  tell  the  story 
of  his  life,  though  I  am  fully  conscious  of  the  responsibility  I  incur 
in  giving  Wolfe's  letters  to  the  world  thus  unabridged ;  for,  in 
truth,  they  offer  a  much  more  intimate  glimpse  into  this  world- 
hero''s  character  (and  into  the  domestic  and  official  life  of  his  day) 
than  any  yet  offered,  and  in  so  far  may  expose  him  to  the 
misapprehensions  and  the  censure  of  minds  little  accustomed  to 
appraise  genius.  Litter  a  script  a  manet.  How  many  shadowy 
saints  have  emerged  from  the  ordeal  of  publicity  as  certain 
sinners  ?  No  man  is  at  his  best  in  dressing-gown  and  slippers, 
and  martial  heroes  are  seldom  heroic  and  often  not  very  martial 
in  the  intimacy  of  the  family  relation.  Scores  of  these  letters  of 
Wolfe's  are  effusions  prompted  by  the  filial  duty  of  a  self-educating 
youth  dealing  with  family  and  personal  topics,  and  are  by  no  means 
to  be  taken  as  reflecting  or  illustrating  his  rarer  and  public 
qualities. 

But  there  are  others  even  amongst  his  letters  to  his  parents  of 
a  different  character,  letters  evincing  sound  sense,  the  process  of 
his  severe  self-discipline,  a  clear  insight  into  human  nature.  In 
the  epistles  to  his  friend  Rickson  and  notably  in  the  one  to  Thomas 
Townshend,  there  is  further  testimony  to  the  truth  of  Napier's 
dictum  that  no  example  can  be  shown  in  our  military  history  of  a 
great  general  who  was  not  also  a  well-read  man. 


viii  PREFACE 

Taking  the  letters  as  they  stand,  making  all  allowances  for 
the  careless  phrasing  of  some  and  the  obsolete  interest  of  others, 
with  what  feelings  do  we  arise  from  their  perusal  ?  We  are  con- 
vinced, if  ever  we  needed  conviction,  that  the  hand  that  penned 
them  was  of  astonishing  precocity  and  power — that  this  singular 
youth  was  to  war  what  the  younger  Pitt  was  to  politics  or  John 
Keats  to  letters  ;  we  are  convinced  that  through  all  his  vagaries,  and 
there  were  many,  through  all  his  foibles,  his  passionate  dissatis- 
faction, his  impatience  of  fools,  there  shines  inextinguishably  the 
lamp  of  genius.  Scan  the  muster  of  the  martial  heroes  of  England, 
and  where  will  you  match  such  ardour  of  soul,  such  purity  of 
patriotism,  such  zeal  for  arms,  such  contempt  for  danger,  such 
devotion  to  duty  ?  Perhaps  in  Nelson,  in  Gordon,  in  John 
Nicholson ;  and  it  is  amongst  such  names  as  these  at  the  head  of 
the  scroll  that  the  name  of  Wolfe  must  be  for  ever  inscribed. 

This  book  I  may  call  the  natural  fruit  of  a  long  sentimental 
relationship.  When  as  a  child,  born  in  the  province  which  his 
victory  assured  to  us  of  British  blood,  I  strayed  about  the  spot 
where  Wolfe'^s  valiant  spirit  escaped  from  his  frail  body,  I  little 
dreamt  that  my  destiny  would  lead  me  to  make  a  home  in  my 
hero's  native  village  on  the  other  side  of  the  rolling  seas — nay,  in 
the  very  house  which  of  old  resounded  to  his  boyish  laughter. 

It  was  pleasant  to  me  to  reflect  as  I  transcribed  many  of  these 
letters  at  Squerryes  Court  that  I  had  stood  on  the  rolling  meadow 
where  once  stood  Louisbourg  (where,  in  a  flock  of  peacefully  reposing 
sheep,  I  could  almost  have  fancied  I  beheld  the  army  of  my  keen- 
eyed  brigadier  asleep) ;  that  the  paths  he  trod  in  the  course  of  his 
regimental  service  in  this  kingdom  from  Banff*  to  Exeter,  from 
Bristol  to  Dover,  I  also  have  trod ;  that  I  sought  out  his  quarters 
in  Paris  and  Ghent  and  Ostend  because  they  were  his. 

Brief  as  it  is,  Mr.  Bradley's  monograph  upon  Wolfe  deserves 
always  to  be  read  for  the  fluent  charm  of  his  narrative.  To 
Wolfe's  first  biographer,  Robert  Wright,  I  pay  a  deserved  tribute, 
and  by  reason  of  his  labours  owe  to  him  many  notes  of  interest. 
Within  the  past  half-century  a  great  fund  of  Wolfiana  has  come 
to  light,  and  about  the  final  catastrophe  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham 
a  whole  literature  clusters.     I  have  availed  myself  of  all  the  more 


PREFACE  ix 

recent  works  in  my  endeavour  to  clarify  the  account  of  the 
Quebec  campaign,  especially  those  of  Mr.  Doughty  (the  Dominion 
Archivist),  Mr.  Julian  Corbett,  General  C.  V.  F.  Townshend,  and 
Colonel  William  Wood. 

But  it  is  on  the  unpublished  letters  of  Wolfe  himself  that  I 
chiefly  rely  in  making  my  appeal  to  the  public  with  the  present 
volume,  although  I  am  aware  that,  to  many,  the  portraits  and 
numerous  illustrations  I  have  collected  and  now  offer  for  the  first 
time  may  vie  with  the  text  in  interest  and  value. 

Quebec  House,  Westerham, 

June  15,  1909. 


CONTENTS 


I.       EARLY    KENTISH    DAYS 
II.       riRST    CAMPAIGNING   IN    FLANDERS 

III.  A   LIEUTENANT    AT    DETTINGEN 

IV.  AIDE-DE-CAMP   AT   CULLODEN 
V.       AFTER   LAFFELDT 

VI.       LIFE   IN    GLASGOW       . 
VII.       THE    UNHAPPY    LOVER 
VIII.       A   WINTER   AT   INVERNESS  . 
IX.       FROM    DUBLIN    TO    PARIS     . 
X.       ADIEU   TO   SCOTLAND 
XI.       EXETER   AND    THE    WEST      . 
XII.       WAITING    FOR    WAR 
XIII.      AGAIN   IN   THE   WEST 
XIV.       THE    ROCHBFORT   EXPEDITION 
XV.       ORDERED    TO    LOUISBOURG  . 
XVI.       THE    CONQUEST   OF    LOUISBOURG 
XVII.       THE   QUEBEC    COMMAND 
XVIII.       IN   THE    ST.    LAWRENCE 
XIX.      THE    REVERSE   AT   MONTMORBNCI 
XX.       THE   FINAL   PLAN 
XXI.       THE  PLAINS   OP   ABRAHAM 
XXII.       CONCLUSION 
APPENDIX 
INDEX        .... 


PAGB 
1 

13 
30 
49 
67 
92 
120 
153 
181 
210 
229 
258 
290 
313 
334 
363 
399 
421 
443 
464 
477 
495 
510 
513 


LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

PORTRAIT  OF  MAJOR-GENERAL  JAMES  WOLFE  .  .  Fnmtispitce 

Tofoxep. 
THE   VICARAGE,    WESTERHAM ^ 

ROOM   WHERE  JAMES   WOLFE   WAS    BORN    AT   WESTERHAM,    JANUARY  [         6 

2,    1727 J 

MAJOR-GENERAL   JAMES   WOLFE > 

MISS    ELIZABETH    LAWSON,    MAID   OF   HONOUR   TO  THE    PRINCESS    OF  I       16 

WALES J 

CENOTAPH   TO   MARK   THE   SPOT  IN  SQUERRYES   PARK  WHERE  JAMES>> 

WOLFE   RECEIVED   HIS   FIRST   COMMISSION  ...  I      38 

JAMES   WOLFE,   AETAT    15 J 

MAJOR-GENERAL   JAMES   WOLFE,    BY   GAINSBOROUGH  ...         48 

LIEUT. -GENERAL   EDWARD   WOLFE 70 

LORD   GEORGE    SACKVILLE 104 

HENRIETTA   WOLFE 128 

MAJOR-GENERAL   JAMES   WOLFE,    BY   SCHAAK  .  .  .  .160 

COLONEL   GUY   CARLETON    (lORD   DORCHESTBR)  .  .  .  .198 

MRS.    BURGHER   (aNNE   WOLFE) 273 

THE    THOMPSON    HOUSE   AT    YORK    (fROM   WHICH   MRS.    WOLFE    WAS^ 

married) I   293 

COLONEL  Wolfe's  quarters  at  devizes     ....  J 

JAMES   WOLFE,    BY   GAINSBOROUGH 352 

COLONEL    WILLIAM    RICKSON ^ 

[    407 
SQUERRYES    COURT,    WESTERHAM J 

GENERAL    GEORGE    WARDE      ........  410 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL    HON.    GEORGE   TOWNSHEND       .  .  .  .414 

MISS   KATHERINE    LOWTHER 418 

VICE-ADMIRAL   SIR    CHARLES    SAUNDERS,    K.C.B 421 

BRIGADIER-GENERAL    HON.    ROBERT    MONCKTON          ....  428 
RIGHT     HON.     ISAAC     BARR^,     M.P.     (wOLFE's     DEPUTY     ADJUTANT- 
GENERAL  AT  Quebec) 430 

ziii 


xiv  LIST   OF   ILLUSTRATIONS 

ToJiMtp 

MAJOR-GENERAL   MARQUIS   DB   MONTCALM 443 

THE   FALLS  OP  MONTMORENCY,  SCENE  OF  WOLFE's  ATTACK,  JULY  31, 

1759 457 

brigadier-general  hon.  james  murray 463 

quebec  house,  westerham ^ 

hall  of  quebec  house,  westerham    ...       / 

the  heights  of  abraham .  476 

Wolfe's  will 483 

wolfe  at  quebec 488 

the  death  of  wolfe 494 

the  death  of  general  wolfe,  by  benjamin  west  .    .    .  498 

ADMIRAL   SIR   JOHN   JERVIS    (eARL    OF    ST.    VINCENT)  .  .  .       500 

HALL    OF    WOLFE     HOUSE    AT   BLACKHBATH,    WHERE    WOLFE's    B0DY> 

LAY   IN   STATE 

SILK   DRESSING-GOWN   WORN   BY  GENERAL  WOLFE  AT  MONTMORENCY 

CAMP,    IN   WHICH    HIS    BODY    WAS   BROUGHT   TO    ENGLAND 

INSTRUCTIONS    FOR   MRS.    WOLFE's    BURIAL 506 

THE   PLAINS   OF   ABRAHAM,    SHOWING   MONUMENT   TO   WOLFE    .  .       508 


\   502 


DIAGRAMS 


PAGB 


PLAN  OF  THE  BATTLE  OF  DETTINGEN,  27tH  JUNE  (n.S.),  1743   .  33 

PLAN  OF  THE  BATTLE  OF  LAFFBLDT,  21  ST  JUNE,  1747     .     .  76 

PLAN  OF  ROCHEFORT  AND  LOCALITY 327 

SIEGE  OF  LOUISBOURG,  1758 371 

PLAN  OP  THE  OPERATIONS  AT  THE  TAKING  OF  QUEBEC     .     .  449 

PLAN  OF*  THE  BATTLE  OP  QUEBEC 492 


EARLY  KENTISH  DAYS 

In  the  unusually  warm  summer  of  1726,  rumour,  after  in- 
dustriously speeding  through  the  Kentish  lanes  and  by-ways, 
brought  the  news  by  post  to  Mrs.  Appleby  of  Streatham  Hill 
that  a  certain  Colonel  Wolfe  of  York  was  coming  to  take  up  his 
residence  in  Westerham  —  "a  middle-aged  Collonel,""  adds  the 
writer,  "late  married  to  a  young  and  pretty  Yorkshirewoman, 
Miss  Thompson.""^ 

One  can  readily  picture  the  pleasing  inrush  of  interest  and 
speculation  on  the  part  of  the  gentlefolk  in  the  secluded  little 
Kentish  town  concerning  the  advent  from  the  North  of  the 
"middle-aged  CoUonel""  and  his  bride.  Westerham  in  the  last 
year  of  the  reign  of  his  Majesty  George  I  was  in  a  state  of 
transition.  Old  families  had  died  out ;  some  few  new  ones  had 
come  in.  For  centuries  society  in  the  place  had  revolved,  as, 
indeed,  it  does  to-day,  about  Squerryes  Court,  and  Squerryes  had 
been  recently  inherited  by  a  petulant  young  Earl  of  Jersey  who 
got  on  ill  with  his  neighbours  and  dependents,  making,  meanwhile, 
little  secret  of  his  desire  to  sell  the  place  to  the  highest  bidder  and 
be  quit  of  Squerryes  and  Westerham  altogether. 

Ere  that  same  summer  waned,  Westerham,  destined  to  be  the 
birthplace  of  the  hero  of  these  pages,  saw  the  arrival  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  Edward  Wolfe  and  his  lady,  and  by  autumn  the  pair  were 
settled  in  a  picturesque,  square-built,  gabled  house  at  the  foot 
of  the  hill,  called  "  Spiers,"  standing  in  two  acres  of  meadow  long 
known  as  the  "  Parish  Meade." 

Gallant  soldier  and  new-made  Benedick,  the  new  tenant  of 
"  Spiers "  seemed  destined  (road-building  and  occasional  visits  to 
his  regiment  apart)  to  a  long  period  of  unmilitary  repose.  The 
pacific  policy  of  the  King's  minister.  Sir  Robert  Walpole,  dis- 
couraged all  hopes  of  active  military  employment,  and  doubtless 
this  reflection  had  decided  him  to  embark  at  last  upon  matrimony. 
Although   more   than   ten   years   had  elapsed  since   Lieutenant- 

^  Letter  from  Mrs.  Mary  Lewis  to  her  sister,  Mrs.  Appleby,  July  3,  1726. 
B 


2     LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Colonel  Wolfe's  last  active  engagement  with  General  Wade, 
chastising  the  refractory  Highlanders  in  the  rising  of  1715,  as  his 
son  was  destined  to  do  in  that  of  1745,  he  could  yet  look  back  on 
a  busy  and  notable  career. 

Born  in  1685,  at  York,  this  Edward  Wolfe  was  the  son  of 
Captain  Edward  Wolfe  ^  and  the  grandson  of  Captain  George 
Woulfe.  The  family  of  the  Wolfes,  or  Woulfes,  emigrated  from 
Glamorganshire  to  Ireland  in  the  fifteenth  century  in  company 
with  many  impoverished  and  adventurous  English  gentry,  amongst 
whom  their  kinsmen,  the  Seymours  and  the  Goldsmiths,  are 
conspicuous.2 

It  seems  clear  that  the  Wolfes,  before  they  emigrated  to 
Ireland,  were  of  respectable  stock.  By  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth 
century  they  had  acquired  estates  in  Ireland  and  a  settled  position 
in  the  western  counties  of  Limerick  and  Clare,  doubtless  coming 
to  be,  as  has  been  truly  observed  of  the  English  settlers  beyond 
"  the  pale,"  "  more  Irish  than  the  Irish."*'  It  does  not  appear, 
however,  that  at  this  period  they  had  ever  intermarried  with  any 
of  the  native  Celtic  families,  and  it  is  doubtful  if  their  illustrious 
descendant  had  any  Celtic  blood  in  his  veins. 

In  1605  we  find  a  James  Woulfe  one  of  the  bailiffs  of 
Limerick,  and  eight  years  later  the  sheriff,  George  Woulfe,  direct 
ancestor  of  Edward  Wolfe,  was  along  with  his  fellow-sheriff  and 
the  Mayor  of  Limerick  summarily  dismissed  for  refusing  to  take 
the  oath  of  supremacy  to  the  "heretic""  James  I  of  England.^ 

1  The  mystery  concerning  General  Wolfe's  grandfather  has  been  effect- 
ually cleared  up  by  Mr.  Charles  Dalton,  editor  of  the  British  Army  Lists.  He 
shows  Edward  Wolfe  the  elder  to  have  been  "  turned  out  of  the  Irish  army 
by  Tyrconnel  for  being  a  Protestant,"  In  1689,  William  III  appointed 
Edward  Wolfe  captain  in  Sir  George  St.  George's  Regiment  of  Foot.  He 
served  thirteen  years  in  St.  George's  regiment  and  was  wounded  at  Terra 
Nova  in  1695.  His  commission  was  renewed  by  Queen  Anne  in  1702,  the 
same  year  his  son  Edward's  first  commission  was  signed. 

2  Sir  Henry  Seymour,  of  Wolfe  Hall,  who  was  knighted  at  the  coronation 
of  his  nephew.  King  Edward  VI,  married  Barbara,  daughter  of  Morgan  Wolfe, 
Esquire. 

^  I  have  adopted  the  genealogy  given  by  Ferrar  in  his  History  of  Limerick, 
1787 ;  but  there  are  several  omissions  and  discrepancies  in  his  account. 
Cromwell,  writing  from  Ireland  to  the  Speaker,  December  19,  1749,  reports 
that  "  Lieutenant-Colonel  Wolfe  (a  person  eminently  faithful,  godly  and  true 
to  you)  is  dead  at  Youghal."  The  tradition  is  that  this  was  Edward,  the  elder 
brother  of  George  and  Francis,  who  was  early  engaged  in  trade  between 
Limerick  and  Bristol  and  afterwards  joined  the  Parliamentary  Army.  There 
is  a  letter  extant  from  Captain  Edward  Wolfe  to  Sir  Thomas  Barrington, 
chief  man  in  Essex  on  the  Parliamentary  side,  in  which  this  passage  occurs  : 
*'  He  did  upbraid  me,  being  a  tradesman,  concerning  my  profession.     I  told 


» 


HIS   GREAT-GRANDFATHER  3 

A  grandson  of  this  contumacious  sheriff,  Francis  Woulfe,  joined 
the  priesthood  and  became  head  of  the  Irish  order  of  Franciscan 
friars,  and,  with  his  brother  George,  was  destined  to  play  a  turbu- 
lent and  fatal  part  in  the  wars  of  the  Commonwealth.  When 
the  Duke  of  Ormond,  eager  on  behalf  of  his  royal  master  to 
defend  the  city  of  Limerick  against  the  onset  of  CromwelFs  army, 
arrived  in  February  1650,  he  issued  a  proclamation  to  the  inhabi- 
tants calling  upon  them  to  co-operate  with  his  troops  and  permit 
the  introduction  of  a  military  garrison.  Within  the  gates  was  a 
priestly  faction  inimical  to  the  Duke,  led  by  Friar  Francis,  who 
contemptuously  rejected  all  the  ducal  overtures.  As  the  danger  grew 
imminent,  Ormond's  friends  amongst  bishops,  nobility  and  gentry 
induced  the  people  to  consent  to  the  quartering  of  a  garrison  just 
outside  the  walls  of  Limerick,  but  the  Duke's  hope  of  actually 
entering  the  city  was  frustrated  by  the  friar,  his  brother  George, 
and  their  faction,  the  keys  being  forcibly  taken  from  the  sheriff. 
Within  the  gates  the  well-meaning  and  zealous  Ormond  was 
openly  defied  as  an  enemy  to  his  country.  Wiser  counsels  ulti- 
mately prevailed,  but  the  Duke,  sick  of  the  business,  cut  the  nego- 
tiations short  by  saying  he  had  no  mind  to  venture  within  a  place 
"  where  the  will  of  a  Franciscan  monk  was  set  above  ecclesiastical 
and  civil  authority."  Limerick  might  go  its  ways  to  its  doom. 
Ormond  departed  to  France. 

Duly  the  redoubtable  Ireton  laid  successful  siege  to  the  city. 
In  vain  Friar  Francis  and  his  brother.  Captain  George  Woulfe, 
urged  the  populace  to  protracted  resistance  :  the  accepted  terms  of 
capitulation  secured  the  lives  and  goods  of  all  but  the  fire-brands, 
the  disaffected  ones  "  who  had  opposed  and  restrained  the  deluded 
people  from  accepting  the  conditions  so  often  offered  to  them."" 
Amongst  the  twenty  proscribed  traitors  were  Friar  Francis  Woulfe 
and  his  brother  the  Captain,  great-grandfather  of  Wolfe  of  Quebec. 
Another,  it  is  not  without  interest  to  know,  was  the  great-grand- 
father of  Edmund  Burke.  So  the  miserable,  plague-stricken 
gaiTison  laid  down  their  arms  and  evacuated  the  city,  the  citizens 
standing  by  helplessly  while  the  Roundhead  troopers  seized  the 
delinquents  and  executed  summary  punishment  upon  them. 
Father  Francis  met  his  death  doggedly,  but  the  Captain,  his 
brother,  somehow  escaped,  slipping  through  Ireton 's  fingers  and 


him,  though  a  tradesman,  I  could  show  my  coat."     Again,  Octoher  21,  1648, 
a  draft  order  was  issued  for  the  payment  of  £100  to  Captain  Edward  Wolfe, 
(House  of  Lords  Calendar),  Hist.  MS.  Comm. :  Barrington  Papers. 
B  2 


4     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

sailing  across  the  Channel  to  England.  Nor  did  fortune  there 
desert  him ;  he  settled  in  Yorkshire,  married,  and  adopted  the 
Reformed  faith.  Thereafter  the  superfluous  "u"  is  erased  from 
his  name,  as  it  was  from  the  Gouldsmiths.  Of  Captain  George's 
son,  Edward,  we  know  little.  It  is  believed  that  he  obtained  a 
lucrative  appointment  in  King  William's  service  in  Ireland,  married, 
and  had  several  children,  of  whom  Edward  Wolfe,  father  of  the 
future  hero,  was  the  eldest. 

In  the  first  year  of  the  reign  of  Queen  Anne,  when  he  was  only 
sixteen,  Edward  was  appointed  second  lieutenant  of  Marines,  then 
commanded  by  Viscount  Shannon.  In  1705  his  commission  (still 
carefully  preserved  at  Squerryes  Court),  shows  him  to  have  been 
made  captain  in  Sir  Richard  Temple's  regiment  of  foot.  Three 
years  later,  when  but  twenty-three,  we  find  him  serving  as 
Brigade-major  with  Marlborough  in  Flanders.  A  quiet,  capable 
man,  rather  than  a  dashing,  valiant  one,  in  whom  everybody, 
from  commander  to  subaltern,  seems  to  have  had  complete  confi- 
dence. He  continued  to  serve  abroad  with  Marlborough  until  the 
peace  of  Utrecht,  and,  as  already  noted,  accompanied  Wade  through 
Scotland  during  the  Highland  rising  of  1715.  Here  his  tact  and 
military  knowledge,  rather  than  any  influence  he  could  command, 
bore  fruit  in  a  lieutenant-colonelcy  a  couple  of  years  later,  and 
with  this  rise,  rapid  in  those  days,  when  lieutenants  of  fifty  and 
even  sixty  were  common  enough,  Edward  Wolfe  had  to  be  content 
for  the  next  twenty  years.  One  of  his  brothers,  Walter,  having 
also  joined  the  army,  was  serving  in  Ireland  as  a  lieutenant,  and 
there,  a  bachelor,  he  ultimately  settled.^  The  Wolfes  were  a  very 
clannish  race,  as  we  shall  see,  and  very  tenacious  of  their  Irish 
connection  both  by  blood  and  friendship. 

The  prospect  of  further  military  advancement  seeming  hopeless, 
Edward  visited  his  native  Yorkshire,  resolved  to  marry  and  found 
a  family.  He  was  lucky  in  his  matrimonial  choice,  which  fell  upon 
Henrietta,  daughter  of  Edward  Thompson,  Esquire,  of  Marsden 
in  Yorkshire,  and,  on  the  maternal  side,  of  the  ancient  family  of 
Tindal  of  Brotherton,  in  the  same  county.  Miss  Thompson  was, 
at  the  time  of  her  marriage  to  Lieutenant-Colonel  Wolfe,  in  her 
twenty-fourth  year,  some  eighteen  years  her  husband's  junior.  A 
tall  brunette,  with  a  complexion  of  great  brilliancy,  "  you  have, 
through  your  whole  time,"  her  son  wrote  to  her  a  quarter  of  a 
century  later,  "  been  a  match  for  all  the  beauties,  your  contem- 

1  He  entered  the  army  in  1704  as  ensign  in  tlie  Earl  of  Orrery's 
Regiment  of  Foot. 


WESTERHAM  5 

poraries.'"'  Making  all  allowance  for  filial  partiality,  Mrs.  Wolfe 
may  be  conceded  to  have  been  a  handsome  woman.  One  physiog- 
nomical peculiarity  she  had — obscured,  perhaps,  by  the  fine  colour- 
ing and  the  bold  chiselling  of  her  other  features — namely,  a  marked 
recession  of  chin,  which  peculiarity  she  bequeathed  to  her  eldest- 
bom  as  an  inheritance  which  he  then,  and  we  now,  seem  destined 
never  to  hear  enough  of. 

Some  weeks  were  spent  at  the  Thompson  town-house  in  York, 
placed  at  the  disposal  of  the  newly-married  couple.  We  do  not 
know  all  the  reasons  why  they  elected  to  reside  in  the  south  of  the 
kingdom.  It  is  probable  that  a  quiet  country  town  was  desired, 
at  a  distance  convenient  both  to  London  and  Portsmouth,  where 
there  was  a  likelihood  of  select,  congenial  society,  and  where  it 
would  be  possible  to  live  inexpensively.  Westerham,  two-and- 
twenty  miles  from  the  metropolis,  fulfilled  these  conditions,  and 
became  for  many  years  the  home  of  the  Wolfes. 

Two  centuries  have  passed  :  Westerham  has  little  changed. 
Its  main  features  are  untouched  by  time;  even  its  population 
remains  stationary.  A  single  long  street  astride  a  narrow  ridge 
at  the  bottom  of  a  valley,  a  street  lined  with  quaint  taverns  and 
many  ancient  houses,  interrupted  mid-way  by  a  spacious  green, 
and  flanked  by  a  fourteenth-century  church  capped  by  a  square 
tower — these  to-day  strike  the  eye  of  the  casual  visitor.  Pasture 
and  blossoming  orchard  gird  it  round  about,  and  on  the  chain  of 
high  hills,  both  north  and  south,  flourishes  much  woodland  wilder- 
ness, thick  growths  of  oak,  beech  and  pine.  At  the  extreme 
western  end  of  the  town  there  lies,  on  the  skirt  of  its  wide 
estate,  the  red-brick  mansion  of  Squerreyes  Court,  bosomed  in 
stately  trees,  admired  of  the  diarist,  Evelyn.  At  the  far  other 
end,  but  on  no  flattering  eminence,  is  Quebec  House,  then  called 
Spiers,  last  house  of  all  on  the  Maidstone  road.  It  is  a  gabled 
Tudor  dwelling,  dating  in  its  oldest  part  from  1507,  with  panelled 
hall,  winding  oak  staircase  and  wide  stone  fire-places,  over  one  of 
which  is  carved  the  arms  of  that  royal  Henry,  in  whose  reign 
Columbus  and  the  Cabots  discovered  America.  In  this  house  the 
errant  veteran,  whose  life  had  been  spent  in  camps  and  barracks, 
began  to  taste  again  the  charms  of  home.  His  wife  proved  herself 
a  skilful  housekeeper,  and  not  slow  to  make  friends  amongst  her 
neighbours,  the  Lewises,  the  Prices,  Mannings,  and  AUinghams. 

The  months  wore  on,  but  the  walls  of  the  ancient,  gabled  house 
at  the  foot  of  the  slope  were  not  destined  to  echo  to  the  first 
imperious  cry  of  its  fair  mistress's  first-bom,  who  was  afterwards 


6      LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

to  command  armies.  That  signal  glory  was  reserved  for  another 
dwelling,  a  stone's  throw  distant. 

Away  with  his  regiment  was  the  Colonel,  road-building  may- 
hap, in  Surrey,  having  promised  to  rejoin  his  lady  on  Christmas 
Eve,  1726.  But  the  days  were  dark  and  lonely,  and  the  Vicar's 
wife,  Mrs.  Lewis,  persuaded  her  neighbour  to  pass  much  of  her 
time  with  her,  the  Vicarage  being  hard  by.  Thus  an  engrossing 
event,  daily  expected,  happened,  as  such  things  sometimes  happen 
in  defiance  of  the  best-laid  plans.  On  the  evening  of  what  in  our 
reformed  calendar  we  call  January  2,  1727,  but  which  was  then 
the  eve  of  Christmas,  was  James  Wolfe  born  into  the  world.^ 

"  Claim  to  have  seen  Wolfe's  birth,"  says  Mr.  Gibson  Thomp- 
son, in  his  Wolfe-Land^  "  may  well  be  relinquished  by  the  gabled 
mansion,  for,  apart  from  that,  has  not  Thackeray  immortalized  it  in 
The  Virginians  ?  He  has  drawn  for  us  Colonel  Lambert  and  Harry 
Warrington,  riding  into  Westerham  in  Wolfe's  manhood  days, 
their  arrival  at  Quebec  House,  their  welcome  by  their  hosts — "  a 
stately  matron,  an  old  soldier,  whose  recollections  and  services  were 
of  five-and-forty  years  back,  and  the  son  of  this  gentleman  and 
lady,  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  Kingsley's  regiment,  that  was  then 
stationed  at  Maidstone,  whence  the  Colonel  had  come  on  a  brief 
visit  to  his  parents."  ^ 

By  reason  of  the  reformed  calendar  we  can  now  twist  history  into 
humouring  our  conceit :  for  was  not  January,  in  the  old  Saxon 
calendar,  named  the  Wolf-month  ?  "  In  this  moneth  a  mighty 
Wulf  was  Y-comen,"  saith  the  Aylesbury  chronicler. 

Beneath  the  Vicarage  roof  at  Westerham  the  future  warrior 
remained  for  the  space  of  three  weeks,  when  he  was  baptized 
(January  11,  O.S.)  in  the  parish  church  of  St.  Mary,  and  brought 
by  Mrs.  Wolfe  herself  to  Spiers.  Exactly  a  year  later  came 
another  son,  baptized  by  the  name  of  Edward,  a  family  name  on 
both  sides  of  the  house  of  Wolfe. 

How  much  later  detail,  copious  and  irrelevant,  one  would  give 
for  knowledge  of  the  first  twelve  years  of  James  Wolfe's  life !     We 

*  General  George  Warde  (the  Younger),  writing  to  the  Rev.  T.  Streatfeild, 
in  1822,  declared  ^^  he  slept  constantly  on  the  hed  in  which  Wolfe  was  born." 
'^This,"  says  Dr.  Pollen,  in  his  interesting  little  brochure  on  Wolfe,  '^  could 
only  have  descended  to  him  as  representative  of  Mrs.  Wolfe's  executor,  i.  e. 
his  uncle,  the  great  General  George.  As  the  Vicarage  was  the  home  of 
the  Rev.  George  Lewis  and  his  large  family,  it  is  not  likely  Mrs.  Wolfe 
furnished  it ;  so  the  bed  alluded  to  must  have  formed  part  of  the  furniture 
of  Quebec  House  (Spiers),  which  we  know  was  occupied  by  the  Wolfes." — Vide 
will  of  Frances  Ellison,  once  of  Spiers. 

2  Wolfe-Land,  p.  33. 


I 


THE   VICARAGE,    WESTERHAM 


ROO:Nr   WHERE   JAMES    WOLFE   WAS    BORN    AT   WESTERHAM,    JANUARY   2,    1727 


HENRIETTA  WOLFE  7 

know  that  both  he  and  his  brother  were  delicate,  sensitive  lads, 
needing  and  receiving  the  watchful  care  of  their  tall,  dark-haired 
mother,  left  much  alone  now,  as  is  the  common  lot  of  a  soldier''s 
wife.  To-day  as  one  roams  the  ancient  house,^  peering  into  attics 
and  secret  closets,  hidden  doorways  in  the  wainscotting  which  once 
led  to  mysterious  compartments  and  convenient  egresses,  it  is  not 
hard  to  conjure  up  the  kind  of  life  the  boys  must  have  led  at  home. 

A  housekeeper  of  the  old-fashioned  sort  was  Mrs.  Wolfe.  She 
had  brought  her  husband  but  a  slender  jointure,  and  he  had 
only  his  scant  savings  and  regimental  pay  to  live  upon.  So  the 
strictest  economy,  consistent  with  gentility,  was  demanded.  A 
comprehensive  cookery  book,  written  in  her  own  hand,  and  not 
always  careful  as  to  spelling,  for  orthography  was  by  no  means  a 
needful  feminine  accomplishment  in  those  days,  is  still  to  be  read. 
It  is  filled,  too,  with  many  elaborate  potions  for  the  sick  and 
ailing,  according  to  contemporary  medical  science.  One — "A 
good  water  for  consumption "" — deserves  to  be  given  here : 

"  Take  a  peck  of  green  garden  snails,""  so  runs  the  prescription, 
"  wash  them  in  Bear  (beer)  put  them  in  an  oven  and  let  them  stay 
till  they've  done  crpng;  then  with  a  knife  and  fork  prick  the 
green  from  them,  and  beat  the  snail  shells  and  all  in  a  stone 
mortar.  Then  take  a  quart  of  green  earth-worms,  slice  them 
through  the  middle  and  strow  them  with  salt :  then  wash  them 
and  beat  them,  the  pot  being  first  put  into  the  still  with  two 
handfulls  of  angelico,  a  quart  of  rosemary  flowers,  then  the  snails 
and  worms,  the  egrimony,  bears  feet,  red  dock  roots,  barbery 
brake,  bilbony,  wormwood,  of  each  two  handfuls :  one  handful  of 
rue  tumerick  and  one  ounce  of  saffron,  well  dried  and  beaten. 
Then  power  (pour)  in  three  gallons  of  milk.  Wait  till  morning, 
then  put  in  three  ounces  of  cloves  (well  beaten),  hartshorn,  grated. 
Keep  the  still  covered  all  night.  This  done,  stir  it  not.  Distil 
with  a  moderate  fire.  The  patient  must  take  two  spoonfuls  at  a 
time." 

Was  the  boy  Wolfe  the  unhappy  recipient  of  many  doses  of 
this  awe-inspiring  mixture  ?  If  so,  one  can  readily  understand  his 
diffidence  in  acknowledging  any  symptoms,  pulmonary  or  other, 
which  would  send  Dame  Wolfe  flying  to  his  attic  chamber  armed 
with  the  terrible,  malodorous  phial  and  tablespoon ! 

1  ''  Quebec  House/'  wrote  Mr.  A.  G.  Bradley  in  1895,  "  suggests  infinite 
possibilities  for  the  hand  of  some  reverent  restorer."  Since  this  was  written 
the  restoration  has  been  admirably  carried  out  at  the  instance  of  its  owner, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  Warde,  of  Squerryes  Court. 


8      LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

The  nurse  of  both  boys  in  their  infancy  was  a  devoted  young 
woman,  Betty  Hooper,  whom  James  never  forgot  to  the  close  of 
his  life.  Betty  married  and  duly  brought  two  sons  into  the  world. 
A  time  was  to  come  when  these  sons  were  taken  into  Wolfe*'s 
regiment,  and  as  their  Lieutenant-Colonel  he  ^vrote  his  mother, 
"  My  nurse's  sons  are  two  of  the  finest  soldiers  in  the  camp.*" 

One  seems  to  see  the  slender,  alert,  eager-faced  children  (one, 
the  elder,  with  the  light-blue  eyes  and  red  hair  of  his  father,  the 
other  more  resembling  his  mother),  scampering  through  the  house, 
frolicking  in  the  garden  with  the  dogs,  playing  hide-and-seek  in 
the  coach-house  and  stables  (then  new-built,  it  is  said,  by  the 
Colonel  himself),  fishing  for  minnows  in  the  adjoining  brook  or 
sailing  a  miniature  fleet  of  ships  upon  its  waters.  Again,  seated 
in  the  hall,  they  are  receiving  such  instruction  at  their  mother*'s 
knee  as  she  could  bestow ;  or,  else,  foregathered  in  the  evening 
about  the  great  fire-place  listening,  open-eyed  and  open-mouthed, 
to  the  stout,  grim  Colonel,  their  sire,  while  he  tells  them  stories 
of  his  campaigns  with  Marlborough  and  Prince  Eugene.  It  may 
be  that  the  martial  ardour  of  both  these  lads  was  fired  and 
that  they  drank  in  battle-lore  with  their  alphabet.  Yet,  truth  to 
tell,  in  their  childish  years  the  career  of  a  soldier  was  far  from 
gay  and  full  of  laborious  routine  from  which  appeared  no  hope 
of  escape  for  years  to  come.  A  momentary  hope  of  fighting 
gleamed  above  the  horizon  when  George  I  died — in  the  very  year 
of  James's  birth — but  this  had  flickered  out  and  Walpole  was 
still  at  the  helm,  as  strong  or  stronger  under  George  II  than 
under  his  royal  predecessor.  There  came  a  new  military  road  to 
be  built  from  their  house  southward  to  Edenbridge,  and  the  Wolfe 
family  had  their  father  at  home  steadily  for  a  couple  of  years,  for 
this  was  the  kind  of  work  his  regiment  was  thought  fit  to  do,  itself 
hardly  a  phase  of  military  life  likely  to  appeal  to  a  couple  of 
high-spirited  boys. 

To  a  school  in  Westerham,  kept  by  a  pedagogue  named 
Lawrence,  the  Wolfe  boys,  in  common  with  other  gentlemen's 
sons,  were  duly  sent.  The  school-house  did  not  long  survive, 
but  the  bell  with  which  old  Lawrence  used  to  announce  the 
approach  of  lesson  hours  is  still  intact  and  sonorous.  Of  traditions 
of  James  Wolfe's  school-days  none  endure.  We  know,  however, 
that  here  at  Westerham  he  formed  one  boyish  friendship  which 
was  to  last  through  his  life,  weaving  the  bonds  of  that  hereditary 
connection  with  his  fame  which  still  subsists  and  of  which  the 
local  Lords  of  the  Manor  are  with  reason  proud. 


JAMES'S   BOYHOOD  9 

Some  five  years  had  the  Wolfes  been  at  Spiers  when  another 
newcomer  purchased  Squerryes  Court  from  the  third  Earl  of 
Jersey.  This  was  John  Warde,  a  widower,  eldest  son  of  Sir  John 
Warde,  who  had  been  Lord  Mayor  of  London  in  Queen  Anne's 
time,  and  nephew  of  another  Lord  Mayor,  Sir  Patience  Warde,  of 
Puritan  times.  John  Warde  had  married  a  sister  of  the  beautiful 
Countess  of  Buckinghamshire  and  of  the  equally  fair  Countess  of 
Effingham,  and  on  her  death  he  wished  to  retire  to  the  country  to 
bring  up  his  several  children.  The  eldest  and  heir  had  seen  ten 
summers  when  the  Wardes  came  to  Westerham,  but  the  second 
son,  George  Warde,  was  just  a  year  older  than  James  Wolfe.  A 
friendship  ripened  between  the  Wolfe  and  Warde  families,  the 
widower  being  no  doubt  very  glad  of  the  advice  of  such  a  pleasant, 
sensible  woman  as  the  Colonel's  lady,  in  the  upbringing  of  his  little 
flock.  Famous  became  the  intimacy  of  the  two  lads,  George 
Warde  and  James  Wolfe.  At  an  early  age  each  disclosed  his 
secret  military  ambitions,  despite  parental  washes  otherwise. 
Together  they  roamed  the  Kentish  countryside  on  horseback 
or  with  their  dogs;  fought  mimic  battles,  solved  problems  in 
strategy  and  participated  in  deadly  ambushes.  The  tastes  of 
Edward,  the  scholar  of  the  family,  were  supposed  to  run  more 
upon  books  than  upon  battles.  A  sweet-tempered  lad,  ever 
looking  up  to  his  elder  brother,  and  miserable  when  they  were 
separated.  Nature  had  not  given  him  James's  ardent  disposition, 
but  when  the  time  came  he  was  resolute,  in  spite  of  his  mother's 
tears,  to  follow  where  he  led.  He  made  a  sterling  young  soldier 
and  died,  as  we  shall  see,  a  miserable  death  in  a  foreign  land. 
Of  his  friend  George,  writing  years  afterwards,  when  both  were 
grown  men,  James  tells  his  mother : 

"  George  Warde  paid  me  a  visit  of  four  days.  I  could  not 
help  being  astonished  at  the  strength  of  his  understanding,  which 
I  never  discovered  so  fully  before.  To  that  he  has  added  a  just 
and  upright  way  of  thinking,  very  uncommon,  and  the  strictest 
morals  of  any  young  man  amongst  my  acquaintance.  This  last 
won't  surprise  you,  for  he  was  never  reckoned  vicious.  He  is 
extremely  indifferent  to  preferment  and  high  employment  in  the 
army — partly  from  his  defect  of  speech,  but  principally  from  an 
easiness,  or  rather  indolence  of  temper,  that  makes  him  unfit  to 
bear  a  heavy  part  in  life." 

James  may  have  correctly  gauged  his  friend's  character  at  that 
time,  or  he  may  have  underestimated  his  fellow  soldier's  qualities. 
Anyhow,  we  shall  see  this  same  indolent  George  becoming,  afte 


10    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Wolfe''s  death,  fired  with  a  new  spirit  and  rising  to  be  a  lieutenant- 
general,  commander  of  the  forces  in  Ireland,  and  the  best  cavalry 
officer  of  his  day. 

Walpole  and  the  era  of  peace  under  George  II  were  now  to  be 
rudely  shaken.  With  the  death  of  Queen  Caroline,  which  occurred 
in  1737,  the  powerful  influence  which  had  supported  the  pacific 
minister  in  his  restraint  upon  the  monarch,  suddenly  ceased. 
Affairs  were  approaching  a  parlous  state  on  the  Continent,  and 
the  Elector  of  Hanover  (who  happened  to  be  King  of  England) 
wanted  to  lend  a  hand.  A  more  vigorous  foreign  policy  was 
inevitable,  and  in  military  circles  the  chances  for  and  against  war 
were  discussed  with  ardour.  Our  Lieutenant-Colonel  began  to 
look  forward  to  employment  and  promotion ;  it  was  decided  to 
move  nearer  London  and  the  Court,  for  the  stout  old  soldier  was 
a  favourite  with  the  King  and  the  King's  Policy,  and  cordially 
detested  Walpole.  Migration  was  otherwise  advisable  in  that 
James  and  Edward  might  avail  themselves  of  somewhat  better 
schooling.  So  it  was,  in  the  latter  part  of  the  year  1738,  when 
James  was  approaching  his  twelfth  birthday,  Westerham  was 
reluctantly  given  up  for  Greenwich.  The  Rev.  Samuel  F.  Swinden, 
a  very  estimable  scholar  and  amiable  man  had  lately  set  up  a 
school  at  Greenwich,  to  which  a  number  of  naval  and  military 
officers  had  sent  or  had  promised  to  send  their  sons,  and  to 
Swinden''s  care  in  1739  James  and  Edward  Wolfe  were  entrusted. 
It  probably  required  no  great  degree  of  acumen  on  the  part  of  the 
new  tutor  to  perceive  that  one,  at  least,  of  his  new  pupils  was  no 
ordinary  boy.  He  bestowed  upon  James  infinite  attention,  taking 
pains  to  win  his  personal  regard.  The  friendship  for  master  towards 
pupil  was  reciprocated — it  ripened  into  an  intimacy  which  lasted 
both  their  lives.  Swinden's  prophecies  of  his  pupiFs  future  great- 
ness were  not  forgotten  when  all  Britain  rang  with  his  fame,  and 
his  sympathy  and  understanding  made  him  then  the  chief  confidant 
and  counsellor  of  a  lonely  mother,  who  hugged  her  sorrow  un- 
ceasingly at  Bath  and  Blackheath. 

Wolfe  was  indeed  no  ordinary  boy,  but  even  then  one  of  the 
most  precocious  geniuses  that  ever  lived.  From  his  tenderest  years 
he  had  resolved  to  be  a  soldier,  just  as  the  boy  Pitt,  a  generation 
or  two  later,  resolved  to  be  a  statesman,  or  Chatterton  to  be  a  poet. 
Everything  which  could  conduce  to  that  end  was  to  be  cultivated, 
everything  which  might  hinder  it — even  games  and  pleasures — was 
to  be  swept  ruthlessly  aside.  It  is  almost  amusing,  if  it  were  not 
so  pathetic,  to  note  how  habitually  he  stifles  his  feelings ;  how 


WAR  AGAINST   SPAIN  11 

through  his  boyhood  and  youth  he  is  determined  to  play  the  grown 
man  and  the  stoic,  in  spite  of  a  feeble  frame  and  delicate  con- 
stitution, pushing  aside  obstacles  and  making  light  of  difficulties, 
dreaming  of  glory  from  the  very  first,  yet  resolved  that  such  glory 
should  be  no  haphazard  thing  but  paid  for  by  hard  work.  Pro- 
fessional efficiency  was,  as  we  shall  see,  his  goal,  and  this  ideal  of 
professional  efficiency  he  partially  derived  from  his  father.  Let  us 
do  the  plodding  old  soldier  justice ;  he  was  a  thorough  master  of 
the  details  of  his  profession,  and  those  in  power  knew  it. 

When  Wolfe  left  his  native  town,  child  as  he  was  in  years, 
his  character  was  in  all  essential  respects  formed.  Decided 
certainly  was  his  choice  of  a  future  career.  He  was  to  return  to 
Westerham  again  and  again  as  boy  and  man,  for  besides  his  bosom 
friend,  George  Warde,  there  were  other  friends,  and  was  there  not 
at  Squerryes  an  attractive  sister  of  George's  whom  he  admired  ? 
We  may  leave  him,  therefore,  installed  at  his  desk  in  Mr.  Swinden's 
school  at  Greenwich,  poring  over  Latin  grammar  and  Euclid,  at 
which  performance  his  brother  Edward,  in  spite  of  his  year'^s 
juniority,  made  far  better  progress  (James''s  mental  culture  was  to 
come  later  on),  to  glance  at  affairs  in  the  world  outside  which  were 
to  have  a  very  decisive  bearing  on  his  career. 

The  overbearing  dealings  of  Spain  towards  British  commerce 
overseas  were  inflaming  the  nation.  It  was  alleged  that  British 
merchandise  was  being  virtually  shut  out  of  the  Spanish  colonies. 
A  secret  compact  was  generally  suspected  between  Spain  and 
France,  in  virtue  of  which  the  latter  was  supporting  Spain  in  her 
anti-English  policy.  Walpole  was  at  last  powerless  to  resist 
the  clamour.  On  October  30,  1739,  England  flung  down  the 
gauntlet,  and  amidst  the  pealing  of  bells  and  blazing  of  bonfires, 
war  was  decreed  against  the  detested  Spaniards.  In  vain  did  the 
old  Whigs  raise  their  voices  warning  their  countrymen  that  this 
fateful  decree  bade  fair  to  light  a  general  conflagration  throughout 
Europe  which  years  might  not  extinguish.  Turbulent,  sick  of 
peace,  distressed  by  bad  harvests,  the  nation  was  in  no  mood  to 
listen  to  such  croakings.  Four  months  later  came  tidings  of 
Admiral  Vemon''s  victory  at  Porto  Bello,  and  England  indulged  in 
all  the  absurdities  of  joy.  Ballads  were  bawled  in  the  streets, 
banners  were  waved,  illuminations  and  vinous  carousings  were  the 
order  of  the  day  and  night.  Flushed  with  this  triumph,  the  nation 
demanded  the  total  destruction  of  Spanish  power  in  the  Western 
hemisphere.  An  expedition  under  Commodore  Anson  was  got 
under  way  to  ravage  the  coasts,  while  a  great  fleet  foregathered  at 


12    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Spithead,  wherewith  to  reinforce  the  hero  , Vernon  in  the  West 
Indies  and  the  Spanish  Main.  Nor  was  this  all.  Ten  thousand 
troops  assembled  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  under  Lord  Cathcart,  with 
orders  to  encompass  as  soon  as  possible  the  destruction  of  distant 
Cartagena.  Colonel  Wolfe's  employment  came  at  last.  A  com- 
petent Adjutant-General  was  wanted,  and  in  July  1740  the 
Colonel  was  instructed  to  proceed  in  this  capacity  to  the  Isle 
of  Wight  camp. 

Of  what  worth  were  the  Reverend  Mr.  Swinden's  grammars, 
atlases,  manuals,  and  copy-books,  at  this  juncture  .^^  For  weeks 
James  had  been  in  a  fever  of  excitement.  He  had  heard  the 
sonance  of  drums  and  the  fanfarade  of  trumpets  in  his  ears,  music 
sweet  enough  to  drown  the  sound  of  class  recitations,  and  in  mid- 
Thames  he  had  seen  sights  to  blur  the  characters  of  arithmetic  and 
algebra  from  his  eager  eyes.  His  father's  appointment  as  Adjutant- 
General  decided  him ;  the  soul  of  the  lean  and  lanky  lad  longed 
to  be  in  the  thick  of  the  fray.  He  stated  the  case  earnestly :  as 
he  meant  to  be  a  soldier,  why  not  begin  now  ?  In  short,  would  his 
father  take  him  with  him  ?  He  would  go  as  a  volunteer — as  a 
member  of  the  Adjutant-GeneraPs  household.  His  naive  repre- 
sentations did  not  fall  on  deaf  ears,  for,  indeed,  the  veteran  knew 
the  stuif  the  boy  was  made  of,  and  secretly  indulged  his  military 
precocity.  Far  otherwise  was  it  with  Mrs.  Wolfe.  What  she  had 
long  dreaded  was  come  to  pass.  She  knew  she  could  not  prevent 
her  eldest-born  from  finally  embracing  the  profession  of  arms,  but 
was  it  not  madness  that  a  child  of  his  years  and  constitution  should 
be  exposed  to  the  dangers  and  hardships  of  foreign  service  ? 

He  was  only  thirteen-and-a-half,  at  an  age  when  most  boys  are 
making  their  first  acquaintance  with  the  forms,  dormitories,  and 
playgrounds  of  a  public  school.  But  maternal  tears  and  entreaties 
were  in  vain,  the  good-humoured  Colonel  would  not  recede  from 
his  promise.  And  so,  on  a  hot  July  day,  father  and  son  took 
their  places  in  the  Portsmouth  coach,  the  boy's  heart  beating  high 
with  the  prospect  of  glory  and  adventure. 


II 

FIRST  CAMPAIGNING   IN  FLANDERS 

For  a  week  after  his  arrival  in  the  Isle  of  Wight,  our  young 
volunteer  had  his  fill  of  martial  sights  and  sounds.  In  the  first 
flush  of  military  activity  domestic  thoughts  and  the  softer  emotions 
were  banished.  Poor  anxious  Mrs.  Wolfe  had  written  ere  the  sun 
went  do\vn  on  their  parting,  and  he  had  carried  her  letter  in  his 
pocket  some  days  ere  he  sat  down  to  indite  the  following 
boyish  composition,  perhaps  the  first  he  had  ever  addressed  his 
mother — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Newport,,  Isle  of  Wight, 

August  6th,  1740. 

I  received  my  dearest  Mamma''s  letter  on  Monday  last,  but 
could  not  answer  it  then,  by  reason  I  was  at  camp  to  see  the 
regiments  off  to  go  on  board,  and  was  too  late  for  the  post ;  but 
am  very  sorry,  dear  Mamma,  that  you  doubt  my  love,  which  Fm 
sure  is  as  sincere  as  ever  any  son's  was  to  his  mother. 

Papa  and  I  are  just  going  on  board,  but  I  believe  shall  not 
sail  this  fortnight ;  in  which  time,  if  I  can  get  ashore  at  Ports- 
mouth or  any  other  town,  I  will  certainly  write  to  you,  and 
when  we  are  gone  by  every  ship  I  meet,  because  I  know  it  is  my 
duty.  Besides,  if  it  is  not  I  would  do  it  out  of  love,  with 
pleasure. 

I  am  sorry  to  hear  that  your  head  is  so  bad,  which  I  fear,  is 
caused  by  your  being  so  melancholy ;  but  pray,  dear  Mamma,  if 
you  love  me,  don't  give  yourself  up  to  fears  for  us.  I  hope,  if 
it  please  God,  we  shall  soon  see  one  another,  which  will  be  the 
happiest  day  that  ever  I  shall  see.  I  will,  as  sure  as  I  live,  if  it 
is  possible  for  me,  let  you  know  everything  that  has  happened, 
by  every  ship ;  therefore  pray,  dearest  Mamma,  don't  doubt 
about  it.  I  am  in  a  very  good  state  of  health,  and  am  likely  to 
continue  so.  Pray  my  love  to  my  brother.  Pray  my  service  to 
Mr.  Streton  and  his  family,  to  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Weston,  and  to 

13 


14    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

George  Warde  when  you  see  him  ;  and  pray  believe  me  to  be, 
my  dearest  Mamma, 

Your  most  dutiful,  loving,  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

p.S. — Harry  ^  gives  his  love  to  Margaret,  and  is  very  careful 
of  me.     Pray  my  service  to  Will  and  the  rest.     Papa  bids  me 
tell  you  that  Mr.  Paterson  will  give  Mr.  Masterton  two  hundred 
pounds  more. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe,  at  her  House  in  Greenwich,  Kent. 

The  boy- volunteer's  confidence  in  his  health  was  ill  justified. 
The  rough-and-ready  life  on  board  ship  soon  brought  out  his  weak 
points.  Colonel  Wolfe  must  have  noted  the  growing  pallor  of  his 
son's  cheek  as  the  weeks  wore  on,  delay  succeeding  delay  in  the 
Solent  and  far  Carthagena  as  far  off*  as  ever.  It  was  November 
before  the  fleet  carrying  Lord  Cathcart's  troops  sailed.  By  that 
time  James  was  so  pitifully  ill  that  the  father  had  no  alternative 
but  to  put  the  precocious  volunteer  on  shore  at  Portsmouth, 
with  instructions  for  him  to  be  carried  home  forthwith.  Lucky 
it  was  that  James  did  not  accompany  the  Carthagena  expe- 
dition. He  could  hardly  have  survived.  Thousands,  including 
Lord  Cathcart  himself,  perished  of  fever.  A  more  disastrous 
expedition  probably  never  sailed  from  English  shores.  But  it  is 
not  necessary  to  advert  here  to  the  gross  mismanagement,  the 
bickerings  between  the  naval  and  military  heads,  the  sufferings  of 
soldiers  and  sailors,  which  have  all  been  set  forth  by  Smollett  in 
the  pages  of  Roderick  Random.  We  need  not  dwell  on  the  terrible 
business  except  to  say  that  for  two  years  it  deprived  the  Wolfe 
family  of  its  head,  and  that  the  experiences  the  old  soldier  then 
underwent  in  the  tropics  were  never  effaced  from  his  memory,  and 
left  their  mark  even  on  his  rugged  constitution.  To  him  the 
moral  was,  as  he  told  his  son  years  later,  never  to  have  anything 
to  do  with  joint  expeditions.  But  even  he  would  have  been  open 
to  conviction  that  it  was  all  a  question  of  personal  character  and 
administration.  And  James  Wolfe  was  destined  to  show  the  world 
what  joint  expeditions  might  become,  and  himself  go  down  to 
future  generations  as  "  the  greatest  master  of  amphibious  warfare 
the  world  has  ever  seen  since  Drake  took  the  art  from  its  swaddling 
clothes.'' 2 

1  Streton.  The  Stretons  were  long  neighbours  and  intimate  friends  of 
the  Wolfes  at  Greenwich. 

2  Corbett :  England  in  the  Seven  Years'  War. 


HIS   FIRST  COMMISSION  15 

Humiliating  enough  must  have  been  the  boy's  return  into 
Greenwich.  After  all  his  hopes  of  immediate  military  service 
(and  his  school-fellows  would  not  have  been  human  if  they  had  not 
rallied  him  on  his  foiled  ambition),  to  go  back  to  the  daily  hum- 
drum contemplation  of  desks,  books,  slates  and  ferulas  !  But  he 
made  the  best  of  it,  probably  aware  that  he  would  be  none  the 
worse  for  a  little  more  book-learning.  He  resolved,  moreover,  to 
train  his  weak  body  in  all  manner  of  useful  exercises.  With  his 
neighbours  and  school-fellows,  whose  names  figure  so  frequently  in 
his  after-correspondence,  he  was  popular  enough.  Such  a  dashing, 
ardent  spirit  could  hardly  fail  to  be  popular.  One  notes  amongst 
them  the  names  of  the  Stretons,  the  Pooles,  Bretts,  Masons,  Cades, 
Hookers  and  Aliens.  Later  on,  the  treasurer  of  Greenwich  Hospital 
sent  his  little  son,  Jack  Jervis,  to  the  same  school.  The  Jervises 
were  close  friends  with  the  Wolfes.  Long  ere  his  day  of  renown  as 
Admiral,  Earl  St.  Vincent  was  proud  to  be  the  custodian  of  a  sacred 
trust  reposed  in  him  by  one  of  his  earliest  Greenwich  friends,  as  we 
shall  see  in  the  conclusion  of  this  history. 

Although  he  went  back  doggedly  to  his  lessons,  James  warned 
his  mother  that  he  had  not  relinquished  his  design  of  entering  the 
army  as  soon  as  any  opportunity  came.  He  had  written  his  father, 
importuning  him  to  exert  his  influence.  The  squire  of  Squerryes 
also  bestirred  himself,  his  own  son's  military  ambitions  being  now 
disclosed.  There  were  frequent  visits  to  Westerham,  where  James 
Wolfe  was  always  welcome.  The  fateful  moment  in  the  boy's 
life  came  at  last.  To  the  south  of  Squerryes  Court,  not  far  from 
the  mansion,  is  a  large,  circular  brick  pigeon-house.  It  was  the 
custom  of  the  two  friends  to  frequent  this  spot  for  fencing, 
pistol-shooting,  and  other  pastimes.  A  few  days  before  James's 
fifteenth  birthday,  the  school  at  Greenwich  having  broken  up  for 
the  Christmas  holidays,  James  had  ridden  over  to  Westerham  for 
a  few  days  under  his  friend's  roof.  One  morning  the  sound  of  the 
post-horn  was  heard  at  the  gates,  and  a  few  moments  later  the 
squire  himself  was  seen  approaching  along  the  gravelled  path,  in 
his  hand  a  large  official  packet  "  On  His  Majesty's  service."  The 
lads  ran  to  meet  him.  The  packet  was  addressed  to  "  James  Wolfe, 
Esq."  Quickly  the  boy  tore  open  seal  and  envelope,  disclosing  a 
commission  signed  by  King  George  II,  and  countersigned  by  Lord 
Harrington,  appointing  him  second  lieutenant  in  his  father's 
regiment  of  marines.  It  was  dated,  "  St.  James's,  November  3rd, 
1741."  There  had  been  a  delay  in  forwarding  it,  probably  inten- 
tional.    One  can  see  the  two — Damon  and  Pythias — locked  in  an 


16    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

embrace,  and  the  honest  squire  shaking  his  guest's  hand,  roundly- 
congratulating  him  on  the  commencement  of  a  career.  Beneath 
the  tall  trees  on  the  spot  where  this  pleasing  incident,  so  fraught 
with  possibilities,  occurred,  the  heir  of  the  estate  raised  long 
afterwards  a  pedestal,  crowned  by  an  ornamental  urn.  The  visitor 
to-day  may  read  thereon  the  following  lines — 

''Here  first  was  Wolfe  with  martial  ardour  fired. 
Here  first  with  glory's  brightest  flame  inspired ; 
This  spot  so  sacred  will  for  ever  claim 
A  proud  alliance  with  its  hero's  name." 

One  might  observe  that  the  phrase,  "Here  first  was  Wolfe  with 
martial  ardour  fired,""  has  no  exact  reference  to  the  incident  just 
described ;  for,  as  George  Warde  well  knew,  martial  ardour  had 
for  many  years  been  a  characteristic  of  his  friend. 

The  joy  of  the  youthful  officer  was  tempered  by  some  dis- 
appointment. The  Marines,  a  corps  which  three-quarters  of  a 
century  before  had  grown  out  of  "  The  Maritime  Regiment  of  the 
Lord  High  Admiral  of  England,'*''  was  hardly  a  body  for  which 
such  a  bad  sailor  as  James  Wolfe  was  fitted.  But  a  beginning 
had  to  be  made  somewhere ;  it  was  his  father''s  old  corps,  and 
probably  where  his  influence  lay  strongest.  Mrs.  Wolfe  was  ready 
to  move  heaven  and  earth  to  rescue  her  son  from  the  terrors 
of  such  a  service ;  and  James  himself  soon  recognized  that  as 
his  father's  regiment  was  5000  miles  away  there  was  no  immediate 
chance  of  military  activity.  Fighting  was  what  he  wanted — fighting 
at  sea  if  it  could  not  be  on  shore.  All  around  him  the  air  was 
charged  with  war.  Armaments  for  Continental  service  were  in 
preparation.  The  neighbourhood  of  Greenwich  was  already  astir 
with  horses,  artillery  and  red-coats.  Eagerly,  therefore,  he  embraced 
the  first  opportunity  that  came  to  exchange  into  the  line ;  on 
March  25,  1742,  the  King  signed  a  commission  creating  his 
impetuous  young  subject  ensign  in  the  Twelfth,  then  known  as 
Colonel  Duroure''s  regiment  of  Foot.  The  business  of  signing 
military  commissions  had  become  somewhat  perfunctory  of  late, 
but  did  not  His  Majesty  make  some  remark  upon  this  "hiipfend 
fiillen''  of  the  adjutant-generaFs  who  only  four  months  before  he 
had  sent  to  join  the  Marines  ?  "  Much  too  young,"  was  doubtless 
his  comment  then,  as  it  was  fifteen  years  later  when  he  was  asked 
to  sign  Wolfe"'s  commission  as  a  colonel.  Yet  the  "  colt "  had 
qualities  rare  enough  amongst  young  officers  in  those  days ;  with 
a  lust  for  fighting,  he  combined  extraordinary  aptitude  and  a  desire 
to  excel.    Although  a  child,  he  realized  that  war  was  a  science  and 


AUSTRIAN   SUCCESSION  17 

to  be  taken  seriously.  And  with  such  seriousness  did  he  set  about 
his  duties  as  to  attract  the  attention  of  his  superiors  almost  from 
the  moment  of  his  entrance  into  the  army. 

A  Continental  war  in  which  England  should  participate  had 
been  for  some  time  brewing.  In  October  1740,  when  Wolfe  was 
being  sent  home  sick  from  the  Solent,  news  had  reached  England 
of  the  death  of  the  Emperor  Charles  VI.  Thereupon  his  daughter 
Maria  Theresa''s  title  to  his  estates  was  disputed  by  the  Elector  of 
Bavaria,  the  Pragmatic  Sanction  flouted  by  the  chief  powers  of 
Europe,  and  her  dominions  insolently  invaded  by  an  able  and 
ambitious  prince  who  had  lately  succeeded  to  the  Prussian  throne. 
The  first  result  of  Frederick's  victories  in  Silesia  was  to  betray 
the  weakness  of  the  Austrian  monarchy  and  to  encourage  other 
nations  to  share  in  the  spoils.  But  there  were  those  who  regarded 
with  a  chivalrous  interest  the  young  Queen  of  Hungary  and  were 
ready  to  support  her  claims,  and  amongst  such  Great  Britain 
soon  took  a  first  place.  Albeit,  in  vain  Walpole  tried  to  act 
as  intermediary  between  Maria  Theresa  and  Frederick,  in  vain 
the  aged  Cardinal  Fleury  strove  to  prevent  France  from  support- 
ing the  Elector's  claims  with  arms.  By  the  summer  of  1741 
the  unhappy  Queen  had  been  compelled  to  flee  from  Vienna,  then 
besieged  by  the  Elector's  forces,  and  to  take  refuge  in  Hungary. 
There,  amongst  the  faithful  Hungarians,  who  hailed  her  not  as 
Queen,  but  as  King,  she  learnt  that  her  rival  had  been  chosen 
and  crowned  Emperor  under  the  title  of  Charles  VII.  About 
the  same  time  a  large  French  army  was  in  the  field  a  Spanish 
armament  was  sailing  from  Barcelona  to  attack  the  Austrian- 
Italian  domains. 

Such  was  the  situation.  Throughout  Great  Britain  all  this, 
taken  together  with  the  Cartagena  and  Cuba  failures  and  the 
King's  private  negotiation  of  a  treaty  of  neutrality  as  regarded 
Hanover,  occasioned  a  ferment  of  excitement.  The  odium,  the 
guilt  of  all  was  hui'led  at  the  unpopular  minister,  and  "  Down  with 
Walpole  "  became  a  cry  too  powerful  to  be  resisted.  In  February 
1742,  Walpole  resigned.  A  new  Parliament  and  administration, 
headed  by  Cartaret,  resolved  on  vigorous  measures  to  support  the 
Queen  of  Hungary,  and  the  Pragmatic  Sanction  which  justified  her 
title  became  a  popular  toast  throughout  the  comitry  in  circles 
which  would  have  been  puzzled  indeed  to  render  a  definition  of 
that  famous  pact.  The  Commons  voted  Maria  Theresa  a  ^^500,000 
subsidy ;  and  more  than  five  millions  were  granted  to  prosecute 
the  war.  In  the  very  week  of  Wolfe's  commission  as  ensign  it  was 
c 


18    LIFE   AND  LETTERS  OF  WOLFE 

decided  to  send  a   British  army  of  17,000  men  to  Flanders  as 
auxiliaries  to  the  Austrian  forces.     The  command  of  this  force 
was  given  to  Lord  Stair,  who,  after  twenty  years  of  unemployment, 
was  made  a  field-marshal.^     It  was  ordered  to  be  assembled  on 
Blackheath,   and   on    April   27   the   King,   accompanied    by   his 
sons,  the  Prince  of  Wales  and  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  came  to 
review  the  troops.     Many  years  had  passed  since  such  a  martial 
array  had  been  seen  in  England.     Monster  crowds  poured  from 
the  capital  to  witness  the  spectacle.     Of  cavalry  there  were  three 
troops    of   horse  -  guards,   the    "  Blues,"*"*    and    five   regiments   of 
dragoons.     There  were  thirteen  regiments  of  infantry,  who  to  the 
music  of  fife  and  drum,  marched  and  counter-marched  before  the 
royal   eye   that   day.      Were   there   any  in   the   vast   throng   of 
spectators,  apart  from  relations,  friends  and  school-fellows,  who 
cast  eye  twice  upon  the  slim,  erect,  bright-faced  stripling  who  bore 
aloft  gaily  the  colours  of  the  Twelfth  Regiment  of  Foot .?   Probably 
none,  for   what   oracle   was   there   to   say  what  this  boy  would 
become .?     Fifteen  years  and  four  months  had  passed  over  his  head, 
that  head  whose  red  hair  was  already  concealed  by  a  powdered 
wig ;   yet  his  stature  was  already  that  of  a  tall  man.^ 

The  sun  shone  and  fife  and  drum  wrought  bravely  as  James 
Wolfe  marched  along  with  his  regiment  to  Deptford,  where  trans- 
ports were  lying  in  mid-stream  ready  to  bear  him  away  to  Flanders, 
that  ancient  cockpit  of  Europe.  No  wonder,  after  so  long  a  peace, 
there  was  a  spirit  of  fervour  amongst  the  troops  and  much  eager 
speculation  as  to  the  adventures  which  awaited  them  in  foreign 

I  parts.  From  the  old  veteran,  his  father,  the  young  ensign  had 
long  since  learnt  much  of  Flanders  and  the  campaigns  of  Queen 
,  Anne"'s  day,  and  knew  something  of  the  character  of  the  country. 
It  was  great  news  to  him  that  his  bosom  friend,  George  Warde, 
was  also  going  out  as  cornet  of  dragoons.  It  was  good  to  have  an 
old  friend  in  foreign  parts.  Night  drew  in  and  the  whole  fleet  was 
in  the  Channel,  the  cliffs  of  the  North  Foreland  receding  before  the 
gaze  of  the  young  watcher  in  the  stern.  But  the  wind  dropped 
just  off  the  Nore,  and,  much  to  the  young  ensign's  disappointment, 
there  was  a  delay  of  some  days  before  they  could  cross  the  Channel 
to  Ostend.^     A  very  different  place  was   Ostend  in  1742  to  the 

1  Stair  had  with  him  Generals  Honeywood,  Cope,  Li^onier,  Hawley  and 
the  Earl  of  Albemarle ;  Brigadier-Generals  Cornwallis,  Bragg,  Pulteney, 
Huske,  Ponsonby,  Frampton,  Lord  Effingham  and  Lord  Rothes. 

2  Wolfe  eventually  attained  the  height  of  six  feet  three  inches. 

3  Brigadier  Frampton's  Order-book  contains  the  following.  May  20, 1742 — 
^^A  return  of  each  battalion  be  given  in  immediately  in  the  following 


MARCH   TO   GHENT  19 

pleasant  Belgian  watering-place  of  to-day.  It  had  not  yet  yielded 
its  commercial  pretensions  founded  on  its  selection  by  Charles  VI 
as  the  emporium  of  the  East  India  Company.  That  choice  had 
been  revoked  a  dozen  years  previously,  but  much  trade  had  been 
brought  to  the  port  in  consequence,  and  traders  and  mariners  of  all 
nations  were  to  be  seen  on  the  streets  and  quays,  while  on  the 
beach  not  a  solitary  mortal,  Fleming  or  other,  so  eccentric  as  to 
plunge  into  the  high-rising  surf  for  mere  pleasure. 

After  a  day's  halt  at  Ostend  the  troops  marched  to  Bruges 
between  two  serried  lines  of  peasants  who  had  turned  out  to  see 
the  unaccustomed  spectacle  of  British  red-coats.  The  ancestors  of 
the  modern  Belgians  were  not  a  martial  people ;  what  patriotic 
zeal  they  had  once  possessed  had  been  largely  crushed  out  by  a 
long  period  of  foreign  rule  and  by  conditions  discouraging  any 
deep  sense  of  nationality.  They  were  content  to  be  the  subjects  of 
Austria  if  that  would  ensure  their  peace  and  immunity  from 
military  sacrifices.  But  the  cause  of  the  Queen  of  Hungary  was 
not  calculated  to  awaken  their  enthusiasm,  and  the  prospect  of 
having  Maria  Therasa's  British  auxiliaries  quartered  upon  them 
was  generally  repugnant.  In  fact,  the  brief  march  to  Ghent  by 
way  of  Bruges  was  sufficient  to  reveal  to  officers  and  men  the 
temper  of  the  ignorant,  priest-ridden  inhabitants. 

"  They  hate  the  English  and  we  hate  them,"  wrote  a  captain 
home,  "  and  the  Queen  of  Hungary  holds  them  like  a  wolf  by  the 
ears."i 

When  Ensign  Wolfe  marched  in  at  the  close  of  a  sultry  June 
day  into  the  ancient  town  of  Ghent,  he. had  no  idea  of  the  plans 
of  his  commander-in-chief  or  how  long  his  sojoiu'n  there  would  be.^ 

form  : — captains'  names^  number  of  officers,  sergeants,  corporals,  drums  and 
private  men.  No  more  than  five  women  per  company  be  permitted  to 
continue  on  board  the  transports.  A  commissioned  officer  on  board  each 
transport  to  see  the  provisions  delivered  to  the  men  and  that  there  is  no 
waste  made.  The  commanding  officer  of  each  transport  is  to  take  care  that 
neither  officer  nor  soldier  lie  on  shore. 

"A  sergeant,  a  corporal  and  twelve  men  of  each  transport  to  be  as  a 
guard  to  keep  things  quiet  and  to  place  centrys  on  the  officers'  baggage,  and 
to  suffer  no  man  to  smoke  between  decks.  To  take  care  of  the  lights,  and  to 
commit  any  man  prisoner  that  is  guilty  of  any  disturbance,  and  that  man 
will  be  severely  punished. 

"  The  tattoo  and  Revallee  not  to  be  beat  on  board  any  of  the  transports 
unless  a  gun  is  fired  by  a  man-of-war,  or  till  further  orders. 

"The  parole  is  King  George." — Townshend's  Life  of  Marquess  Townshend, 
p.  5. 

1  Gentleman's  Magazine,  1742,  p.  628. 

2  "  The  city  of  Ghent,"  wrote  one  of  the  officers,  '^  is  very  large  ;  I  believe 
nearly  as  large  as  the  city  of  London  (within  the  walls)  but  iiie  inhabitants  not 

G  2 


20    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

He  could  hardly  have  supposed  that  Lord  Stair  intended  to  remain 
there  for  more  than  a  few  weeks,  or  that  his  battalion  would  not 
shortly  get  a  sight  of  the  enemy.  The  first  thing  to  be  done  was 
to  find  quarters  for  the  troops,  which  was  not  effected  without 
difficulty.  Encamping  the  first  two  nights  in  the  market-place 
and  open  spaces  of  the  town,  by  degrees  they  became  quartered 
upon  the  unwilling  populace.  Affrays  were  of  frequent  occurrence. 
A  fortnight  after  their  arrival  young  Wolfe  could  write  home  of  a 
bloody  collision  between  citizens  and  soldiery  which  had  most  of  the 
ugly  features  of  a  pitched  battle.  Thus  it  happened :  the  com- 
missariat not  being  of  the  best,  the  soldiers  complained  of  a  want 
of  meat.  The  Ghent  butchers''  prices  were  inordinately  high,  and 
the  prime  cuts  displayed  were  doubtless  a  sore  temptation.  One 
day  a  soldier  took  up  a  piece  of  meat  in  the  market-place  "  to 
smell  if  it  was  sweet,""  he  said,  before  buying  it.  The  butcher, 
suspecting  him  of  thievery,  slashed  him  across  the  face  with  his 
knife.  This  was  going  very  far,  and  one  of  the  soldier''s  companions 
retorted  by  promptly  running  the  butcher  through  the  body. 

Armed  with  knives  and  cleavers,  the  butchering  fraternity  flew 
to  avenge  the  impaled  victim ;  nor  these  alone,  for  many  of  the 
trading  burghers  joined  in  the  fray.  As  fast  as  the  red-coats  came 
up  they  were  surrounded  and  cut  down,  until  many  bodies  lay 
weltering  in  the  market-place.  A  small  detachment  of  cavalry  was 
ordered  out,  and  by  this  time  the  numerous  mob  was  put  to  flight. 
It  was  two  hours  before  the  tumult  was  quelled  ;  several  burghers 
had  been  slain.  The  soldiers  were  locked  up  in  their  barracks  for 
the  remainder  of  the  day,  while  the  burgomaster  summoned  a 
town  meeting  and  at  the  behest  of  Lord  Stair  issued  an  edict  that 
"  whoever  should  offer  the  least  affront  to  the  subjects  of  the  King 
of  Great  Britain  should  be  whipped,  burnt  in  the  back  and  turned 
out  of  the  town,""  a  sufficient  accumulation  of  penalties  to  make  the 
burghers  more  careful  in  the  future  about  outward  exhibitions  of 
temper  whatever  animosity  they  might  cherish  in  their  hearts. 

Wolfe  got  fairly  comfortable  lodgings  at  the  beginning,  and 
found  much  in  his  new  life  and  surroundings  to  entertain  him.  As 
long  as  summer  lasted  the  fortifications,  the  ancient  buildings  and 

the  twentieth  part.  The  streets  are  very  regular  and  well  paved,  having  no 
carts  employed  in  trade  and  but  few  coaches  to  tear  up  the  pavement.  The 
houses  are  very  irregular  and  antique,  bedizened  with  paint  and  whiting  on 
the  outside,  which  makes  the  insides  appear  more  shocking  and  dismal  ;  being 
very  large  old-fashioned  rooms,  bare  walls,  and  scarcely  any  furniture.  The 
churches  are  many  and  large,  and  very  antique  ;  richly  adorned,  and  con- 
tain the  chief  wealth  of  the  city." — Gentleman's  Magazine,  1742,  p.  528. 


BUYS  A   FLUTE  21 

canals,  the  quaint,  irregular  streets  were  a  fund  of  interest.^  The 
people,  in  their  "  greasy,  ragged  cloaks,"  which  were  suspected  of 
serving  for  coat,  waistcoat  and  breeches,  and  their  wooden  shoes, 
offered  as  strong  a  contrast  to  the  townsfolk  of  Westerham  and 
Greenwich  as  could  well  be  imagined.  He  found  amongst  the 
better  claiss,  however,  some  agreeable  fellows  with  whom  he  could 
air  his  as  yet  small  stock  of  French.  As  the  weeks  of  detention 
in  Ghent  stretched  into  months,  he  began  to  grow  a  little  lonely, 
especially  as  George  Warde,  whom  he  had  hoped  to  meet  almost 
immediately  after  his  arrival,  was  for  some  time  delayed  with  the 
Horse-Guards.  His  Colonel  showed  him  every  kindness,  but  there 
was  no  one  congenial  of  his  age  at  mess  with  whom  he  could  form 
a  real  intimacy.  As  a  means  of  diversion  in  the  intervals  of  read- 
ing, strolling  and  guard  duties,  he  bought  a  flute  and  took  lessons 
upon  it  from  a  Belgian  master.  The  theatre  would  shortly  re-open, 
and  thus,  if  the  regiment  did  not  march,  there  was  still  a  prospect 
of  relieving  the  tedium  of  inactivity.  When  George  Warde 
arrived  and  the  two  friends  embraced,  it  seemed  likely  that  a 
speedy  farewell  to  Ghent  was  imminent.  To  a  letter  from  his 
mother  telling  him  that  his  father  had  returned  from  Cuba  and 
was  appointed  Inspector  of  Marines  he  replies — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Ghent,  Augrist  27th,  1742. 

Dear  Madam, — I  just  got  your  kind  letter  by  Captain 
Merrydan ;  I'm  very  much  obliged  to  you  for  it,  and  heartily 
glad  to  hear  you  are  all  well. 

I  pity  my  uncle  Tin  ^  much.  I  think,  by  what  I  have  heard 
you  say  of  him,  he  does  not  deserve  such  ill  luck.  I  saw  my 
friend  George  Warde  for  the  first  time,  though  the  Horse  have 
been  here  these  two  days,  for  I  happened  to  be  on  guard  when 
they  came ;  nor  have  I  as  yet  seen  Captain  Merrydan,  for  my 
Captain  brought  me  the  letters  from  him.  I  intend  waiting  on 
him  this  afternoon. 

I  am  vastly  obliged  to  you  for  your  good  advice,  and  will 
follow  it  as  much  as  lies  in  my  power,  I  assure  you.     I  got  a 

^  "The  fortifications  are  very  strong/'  we  are  told  ;  "as  is  the  citadel, 
particularly  the  gate  called  St.  Peter's,  which  opposed  the  Duke  of 
Marlborough's  army  eight  days,  but  was  then  forced  to  surrender.  The 
works  of  the  siege  [in  which  Wolfe's  father  had  taken  part]  are  yet  remain- 
ing. .  .  Our  army  here  makes  a  gallant  figure  consisting  of  the  flower  of 
England,  brave  fellows,  fine  horses,  &c.,  and  all  ready  for  the  field  at  the 
first  notice." — Gentleman  s  Magazine ,  1742,  p.  528. 

2  Edward  Tindal  Thompson. 


22     LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

letter  from  my  father  two  days  ago,  by  Captain  Stanhope,  which 
I  intend  thanking  him  for  next  post ;  and  then,  perhaps,  I  shall 
write  to  him  from  camp,  for  our  colonel  has  desired  us  to  have 
everything  ready  against  Monday  next.  I  have  just  now  done 
packing  up,  and  can  be  ready  to  march  in  two  hours. 

I  wish  my  uncle  Brad  ^  may  be  coming  home  as  you  heard,  for 
I  know  it  would  give  you  great  pleasure  to  see  him.  I  am  very 
sorry  my  brother  Ned  complains  of  my  not  answering  his  letters  ; 

1  think  I  have  never  missed  any  nor  ever  will.  Pray  be  so  good 
to  give  my  kind  love  to  him.  My  shirts  are  in  very  good  order, 
and,  I  hope,  will  last  me  a  great  while ;  but  I  fancy  (by  what 
people  say)  not  so  long  as  we  are  in  Flanders. 

Pray  my  duty  to  my  father,  and  love  to  cousin  Goldsmith ; 
and  with  best  compliments  to  my  good  friends  at  Greenwich, 
and  hearty  wishes  for  your  healths,  I  must  beg  to  remain 
Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

James  Wolfe. 

PS. — Cope''s  Dragoons  are  expected  here  to-night.  I  often 
play  my  flute,  and  am  going  to  it  now. 

The  "Cousin  Goldsmith"  mentioned  in  the  foregoing  was 
Wolfe's  father's  sister's  son,  Edward  Goldsmith  of  Limerick,  whose 
own  father  was  first  cousin  to  the  Reverend  Charles  Goldsmith, 
the  original  of  the  Vicar  of  Wakefield  and  the  progenitor  of 
the  celebrated  author,  Oliver  Goldsmith.  At  this  time  Oliver, 
who  used  afterwards  to  say  proudly,  "  I  claim  kinship  with  General 
Wolfe,  the  conqueror  of  Quebec,"  was  an  Irish  school-boy  of 
thirteen.^ 

With  George  Warde  at  Ghent  we  may  be  sure  that  the  time 
did  not  pass  unprofitably  between  the  two  friends.  But  Warde  as 
a  cavalryman  did  not  have  the  same  incentives  to  strategical  pro- 
ficiency as  the  ensign  who  was  already  making  a  study  of  military 
fortification  as  well  as  trying  hard  to  master  an  adjutant's  duties. 
He  did  not  propose  to  remain  an  ensign  longer  than  uncon- 
trollable circumstances  ordered  him  to  be.  Both  lads  took  pleasure 
in  the  play,  seeing  all  the  new  French  productions  as  well  as  the 
classical  ones  well  acted  by  French  companies.    An  excellent  opera 

^  Lieutenant-Colonel  Bradwardine  Thompson. 

2  A  reference  to  Reynolds's  famous  profile  portrait  of  Oliver  Goldsmith  at 
the  National  Portrait  Gallery  reveals  a  curious  resemblance  in  facial  peculiari- 
ties to  those  of  James  Wolfe,  suggesting  that  the  Wolfe  chin  was  a  paternal 
as  well  as  a  maternal  inheritance. 


LIFE  AT   GHENT  23 

house  had  been  erected  at  Ghent  only  a  few  years  before.  His 
mother  having  written  that  one  of  her  letters  had  miscarried  and 
that  she  would  only  write  in  future  when  she  could  entrust  her 
epistle  to  safe  hands,  James,  in  his  next  rallies  her,  as  if  her 
resolution  had  been  inspired  by  economy — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Ghent,  September  12th,  1742. 

Dear  Madam, — I  got  yours  two  days  ago  by  Captain  Guy. 
I'm  heartily  sorry  to  hear  that  the  pleasure  of  hearing  from  you 
is  now  at  an  end.  I  fancy  the  expense  is  not  so  great  as  you 
imagine !  I'm  told  by  several  gentlemen  that  'tis  no  more  than 
sixpence,  and  that,  once  a  month,  wouldn't  hurt  your  pocket.  I 
answered  the  packet  you  was  so  good  to  send  me  by  Captain 
Merrydan ;  I  dined  with  him  yesterday,  and  think  he  seems  to 
be  a  very  good  sort  of  man. 

Fm  glad  you've  got  a  house.^  Long  may  you  live  to  enjoy 
the  blessings  of  a  good  and  warm  one  ! — a  thing  not  easily  found 
in  this  town,  but  that  we  young  ones  don't  mind. 

You  desire  to  know  how  I  live.  I  assure  you,  as  to  eating, 
rather  to  well,  considering  what  we  may  come  to.  For  drink  I 
don't  care  much ;  but  there  is  very  good  rum  and  brandy  in 
this  place,  and  cheap,  if  we  have  a  mind  to  take  a  little  sneaker 
now  and  then  at  night  just  to  warm  us.  The  weather  begins 
now  to  grow  coldish :  we  have  had  rain  for  the  last  two  weeks, 
and  the  people  say  'tis  likely  to  continue  till  the  frost  comes 
in.  I  have  not  begun  with  fire  yet,  neither  do  I  intend  till 
I  know  where  we  shall  encamp. 

This  place  is  full  of  officers,  and  we  never  want  company.  I 
go  to  the  play  once  or  twice  a  week,  and  talk  a  little  with  the 
ladies,  who  are  very  civil,  and  speak  French. 

I'm  glad  to  hear  with  all  my  heart  that  my  brother  is  better. 
He  says  he  goes  to  the  cold  bath  and  that  does  him  good.  Pray 
my  love  to  him.  I  hope  my  father  is  well,  and  keeps  his  health  ; 
be  so  good  as  to  give  my  duty  to  him,  and  to  my  Aunt  Allanson 
if  she  is  with  you,  and  believe  me, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

I  see  my  friend  George  often ;  he  has  just  left  me,  and 
desires  his  compliments. 

1  The  Wolfes  ahout  this  time  took  a  town  house  in  Burlington  Gardens, 
the  Cartagena  affair  having  proved  profitable  to  the  Adjutant-General. 


24     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Winter  drew  in ;  fainter  grew  the  hope  of  marching  from  Ghent. 
The  time-honoured  institution  of  "  winter  quarters "  was  too 
generally  respected  in  those  days  (the  boy  must  have  conned  well 
that  line  in  Livy  about  winter  being  a  season  "quae  omnium 
bellorum  terra  marique  sit  quies")  for  Lord  Stair  to  dream  of 
impugning  it.  As  he  lay  still,  after  a  good  deal  of  fighting  in 
Bohemia,  Marshal  Belleisle  retreated  from  Prague,  and  the  other 
French  generals,  Maillebois  and  de  Broglie,  took  up  winter  quarters 
in  Bavaria.  If  Hanover  were  to  be  attacked  by  the  French  (and 
it  was  for  this  purpose  the  British  army,  reinforced  by  16,000 
Hanoverians  in  British  pay,  was  in  Flanders),  it  would  not  be 
before  spring.  Meantime,  there  was  a  prospect  that  the  Wolfes 
would  furnish  still  another  soldier  to  the  army.  Edward,  now 
fifteen,  was  eager  to  join  his  brother. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Ghent,  December  I7th,  1742. 

Dear  Madam, — I  should  have  answered  your  letter  when  I 
wrote  last  to  my  father,  had  not  the  business  I  was  forced  to 
write  about  prevented  me.  I  was  heartily  sorry  you  got  your 
new  house  with  a  cold.  I  hope  it  has  left  you,  and  you  enjoy 
perfect  health,  without  which  there  can  be  no  happiness  to  you, 
nor  consequently  to  me.  My  brother  is  much  to  be  commended 
for  the  pains  he  takes  to  improve  himself  I  hope  to  see  him 
soon  in  Flanders,  when,  in  all  probability,  before  next  year  is 
over,  we  may  know  something  of  our  trade.  Some  people 
imagine  we  shall  return  to  England  in  the  Spring,  but  I  think 
that's  not  much  to  be  relied  on ;  however,  Fm  no  judge  of  these 
things. 

There  is  a  talk  that  some  of  the  regiments  of  Foot  will 
march  to  garrison  two  or  three  towns  (the  Austrians  have 
quitted  to  go  and  join  the  army  in  Bohemia)  ;  they  are  about 
four-score  or  a  hundred  miles  from  hence.  Their  names  are 
Mons,  Charleroy,  and  another  I  don't  know;  but  it  is  not 
certain. 

We  have  had  extreme  hard  frost  for  about  a  fortnight, 
so  that  all  the  rivers  and  canals,  whereof  there  are  great 
plenty  about  the  town,  are  frozen,  so  that  no  boats  can  go, 
nor  any  commerce  be  carried  on  by  water.  There  was  a  little 
thaw  last  night,  so  that  we  are  in  some  hopes  of  its  going 
away. 

I  shall  not  miss  writing  to  you  every  fortnight  as  you  desire. 


A   PAINFUL   MARCH  25 

Be  so  good  to  give  my  duty  to  my  father,  uncles  and  aunts,  and 
love  to  my  brother. 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Mr.  Warde  desires  his  compliments ;  mine  to  the  family,  if 
you  please.     I  hope  Miss  is  well.^ 

By  the  time  the  British  army  under  Lord  Stair  quitted  Ghent 
early  in  February  1743,  James  was  joined  by  his  brother,  who  had 
succeeded  in  gaining  an  ensigncy  in  the  same  regiment.  They 
had  a  terrible  march  before  them,  these  two  delicate  lads,  before 
Duroure's  and  the  division  of  which  it  formed  a  part  could  reach 
the  Rhine — bad  roads,  bad  weather,  bad  food  and  bad  water — and 
Edward  was  of  even  more  tender  make  than  his  elder  brother.  At 
St.  Trond  they  halted  long  enough  for  him  to  pen  the  following 
to  his  mother : 

To  HIS  Mother. 

St.  Troiij  in  the  Bishopric  of  Liege, 

February  12th,  1743. 

Dear  Madam, — I  got  your  letter  of  the  23rd  of  last 
month,  at  Ghent,  and  should  have  answered  it,  as  I  told  my 
father  I  intended,  at  Brussels,  but  was  very  much  fatigued  and 
out  of  order,  so  deferred  it  till  now. 

This  is  our  fifth  day's  march ;  we  have  had  very  bad  weather 
all  the  way.  I  have  found  out  by  experience  that  my  strength 
is  not  so  great  as  I  imagined  ;  but,  however,  I  have  held  out 
pretty  well  as  yet.  To-morrow  is  a  very  bad  road  to  Tongres, 
so  if  I  can  I  will  hire  a  horse  at  this  place,  and  march  afoot  one 
day  and  ride  the  other,  all  the  rest  of  the  journey. 

I  never  come  into  quarters  without  aching  hips  and  knees  ; 
and  I  assure  you  the  wisest  part  of  the  officers  got  horses  at 
Ghent,  though  some  would  have  done  it  if  their  circumstances 
would  have  allowed  it. 

We  have  lived  pretty  well  all  the  way,  but  I  have  already 
been  glad  to  take  a  little  water  out  of  a  soldier's  flask,  and  eat 
some  ammunition  bread.  I  am  now  quartered  at  the  head  man 
of  the  Town's  house,  one  of  the  civilest  men  I  ever  met  with  in 
my  life.     The  people  where  I  was  billeted  refused  to  let  me  in, 

*  Miss  Warde,  sister  to  George,  afterwards  Mrs.  Clayton.  Their  town 
house  also  was  in  Burlington  Gardens. 


26    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

SO  I  went  to  the  townhouse  and  complained,  and  this  gentleman 
took  me  and  another  officer  that  was  with  me  to  his  house. 

I  shall  write  to  my  father  when  we  get  to  the  end  of  our 
march  ;  Fm  glad  to  hear,  with  all  my  heart,  that  he  is  well. 
I'm  in  the  greatest  spirits  in  the  world  ;  I  have  my  health  pretty 
well,  and  I  believe  I  shall  be  very  well  able  to  hold  it  out  with 
a  little  help  of  a  horse.  Pray  be  so  good  as  to  give  my  duty  to 
my  father.  This  is  the  best  paper  St.  Tron  affords  ;  I  have  got 
a  sergeant's  pen  and  ink,  which  are  commonly  very  bad  ;  so  I 
hope  you'll  excuse  everything  that  is  bad  in  this  letter. 
Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

But  "  the  end  of  our  march '"  was  still  far  off,  for  nearly  two 
months  later  the  younger  of  the  two  brothers,  who  had  been 
sharing  a  horse  between  them,  was  detached  on  a  foraging  errand 
to  Bonn,  and  in  the  following  letter  gives  us  a  glimpse  of  what  was 
passing  at  that  time. 

Edward  Wolfe  to  his  Father. 

Bonn,  April  7th,  1743. 

Dearest  Sir, — I  am  sent  here  with  another  gentleman  to 
buy  provisions,  for  we  can  get  none  upon  our  march  but  eggs 
and  bacon  and  sour  bread ;  but  I  have  lived  upon  a  soldier's 
ammunition  bread,  which  is  far  preferable  to  what  we  find  upon 
the  road.  We  are  within  two  leagues  of  the  Rhine,  which  it  is 
most  people's  opinion  we  shall  pass  the  14th  and  then  encamp. 
I  have  no  bedding  nor  can  get  it  anywhere  ;  not  so  much  at  this 
place,  where  the  Elector's  court  is,  which  I  think  a  little  extra- 
ordinary. We  had  a  sad  march  last  Monday  in  the  morning. 
I  was  obliged  to  walk  up  to  my  knees  in  snow,  though  my 
brother  and  I  have  a  horse  between  us  and  at  the  same  time 
I  had  it  with  me.  I  seldom  see  him,  and  had  I  had  the  least 
thoughts  of  coming  to  this  place,  I  am  sure  he  would  have  wrote 
to  you.  This  is  the  first  opportunity  I  have  had  since  I  wrote 
to  you  from  Aix-la-Chapelle,  which  letter  I  hope  you  have 
received. 

I  do  not  expect  a  letter  from  you,  if  it  does  not  come  by 
my  captain,  this  great  while.  I  have  often  lain  upon  straw,  and 
should  oftener  had  not  I  known  some  French,  which  I  find  very 
useful ;  though  I  was  the  other  day  obliged  to  speak  Latin  for  a 
good  dinner,  which  if  I  had  not  done,  I  should  have  gone  with- 


AT   FRANKFORT  27 

out  it.  Most  people  talk  that  language  here.  We  send  for 
eveiything  we  want  to  the  priest,  and  if  he  does  not  send  what 
he  has,  we  frighten  him  pretty  much.  The  people  are  very 
malicious  here  and  very  poor  except  the  priest  and  burgomaster, 
who  live  upon  the  republic  ;  but  I  have  had  the  good  luck  to  be 
billeted  at  their  houses,  where  there  is  everything  good  but  their 
bread. 

We  were  here  at  the  worst  time,  for  they  kill  no  meat  be- 
cause it  is  Lent.  They  say  there  are  many  wolves  and  wild 
boars  in  the  woods  ;  but  I  never  saw  any  yet,  neither  do  I  desire. 
I  think  I  may  end  troubling  you  with  my  nonsense  ;  but  I  flatter 
myself  that  you  have  a  pleasure  in  hearing  from 
Dear  Sir, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

Edward  Wolfe. 

Pray  my  duty  to  my  mother,  and  I  may  venture  very  safely 
the  same  from  my  brother  to  you  both. 

Hard  canteen  biscuit,  hard  floors  and  hard  weather : — it  was 
a  severe  trial  for  the  two  delicately-nurtured  lads. 

The  idea  now  was  to  effect  a  junction  with  the  Austrian  and 
Hanoverian  troops  at  Hochst,  near  Frankfort-on-the-Main,  which, 
on  account  of  the  winding  of  the  river,  was  supposed  to  offer  a 
capital  strategic  position.  From  Frankfort  a  letter  from  Edward 
seems  to  hold  out  a  prospect  of  a  good  deal  more  marching. 

Edward  Wolfe  to  his  Mother. 

Frankfort,  May  4th,  N.S.,  1743. 

Dearest  Madam, — I  don"'t  doubt  but  you  will  think  me  very 
neglectful  in  not  writing  to  you,  but  I  assure  'tis  no  fault  of 
mine,  for  whenever  I  had  an  opportunity  of  sending  a  letter  to 
you  I  did  it  with  a  great  deal  of  pleasure.  I  don't  expect  to 
hear  from  you  till  we  have  beaten  the  French,  and  return  to 
Flanders,  which  time  is  very  uncertain.  We  are  now  within  a 
day's  march  of  the  French  army,  which  it  is  reported  we  shall 
soon  engage,  but  there  is  no  credit  to  be  given  to  half  is  said 
here.  It  is  likewise  said  in  case  the  French  should  go  into 
Bavaria  we  shall  follow  them,  which  is  about  two  month's  march  ; 
so  I  reckon  this  summer  will  be  spent  in  that  agreeable  manner, 
though  I  feel  no  more  of  it  than  anybody  else,  so  I  am  as  well 
contented  as  if  we  were  marching  in  England. 


28    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

I  have  at  least  bought  my  bedding  at  Frankfort,  which  place 
I  think  has  a  little  the  resemblance  of  London,  though  not  half 
so  large.  I  reckon  you  think  I  have  forgot  Mrs.  Cade,  but  I 
assure  you  I  have  not,  though  I  must  confess  there's  not  a  woman 
in  Frankfort,  nor  indeed  in  all  Germany,  that  has  half  beauty 
enough  to  put  me  in  mind  of  her.  Pray  be  so  good  to  remember 
me  to  all  our  neighbours  at  Greenwich,  and  if  Mr.  Swinden  or 
any  one  else  should  ask  after  me,  you  will  be  pleased  to  mention 
that  was  I  in  a  settled  place  they  should  have  no  room  to  com- 
plain of  my  not  writing  to  them,  but  now  as  I  am  always  hurried 
about  in  mounting  pickets,  etc.,  I  am  not  able  to  write  to  any 
one  but  where  my  duty  forces  me. 

I  keep  my  health  very  well;  live  merrily,  and  if  it  please 
God  that  you  and  my  dearest  father  do  yours,  nothing  else  will 
make  me  do  otherwise.  I  hope  and  pray  when  you  write  to 
uncle  Brad  you  will  be  so  good  as  to  make  my  compliments  to 
them  both ;  and  my  duty  to  my  father  concludes  me,  dearest 
Madam, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

Edward  Wolfe. 

Since  the  death  of  Cardinal  Fleury  the  affairs  of  France  were 
directed  by  D''Argenson  and  his  priestly  coadjutor  Cardinal  Tencin, 
the  latter  famous  for  his  devotion  to  the  House  of  Stuart.  After 
Belleisle's  retreat  from  Prague  the  French  army  had  wintered  in 
northern  Bavaria,  thereby  enabling  the  new  Emperor  to  pass  a 
brief  period  in  security  in  his  capital.  But  the  Austrians  were 
closing  around  him,  a  battle  took  place,  and  he  was  again  driven 
forth,  M.  de  Broglie  not  caring  to  risk  a  battle  in  his  behalf. 

The  French  Ministry  felt  that  some  decisive  blow  must  now 
be  struck.  The  Due  de  Noailles  was  sent  with  12,000  troops  to 
Broglie's  assistance,  and  a  check  offered  to  the  Austrian  advance, 
under  their  leader  Prince  Charles  of  Lorraine,  husband  of  Maria 
Theresa.  The  unhappy  Emperor  took  refuge  in  Frankfort,  the 
neutrality  of  which  as  a  free  city  continued  to  be  respected,  at  the 
very  time  the  British  army  was  on  the  march  from  Flanders.  En 
route  Stair  was  reinforced  by  some  Austrian  regiments  under 
Aremberg,  and  the  16,000  Hanoverians  who  had  been  wintering  in 
the  neighbourhood  of  Liege.  It  was  to  prevent  the  junction  of 
this  army  with  that  of  Prince  Charles  that  the  French  bent  all 
their  energies.  Marshal  Noailles  with  60,000  men  was  to  engage 
Lord    Stair's    forces,   while,   at   the    same    time,   50,000    under 


AT  ASCHAFFENBURG  29 

Broglie  were  to  guard  Alsace  and  prevent  the  Austrian s  from 
crossing  the  Rhine.  On  May  14,  Noailles  crossed  the  Rhine  six 
miles  below  Worms,  and  marched  his  army  towards  the  Main, 
with  the  intention  of  seizing  an  elevated  position  near  Hochst, 
which  would  give  him  a  commanding  advantage. 

This  move  induced  Lord  Stair  to  leave  Hochst  for  AschafFenburg, 
twenty  miles  east  of  Frankfort,  where  he  established  his  head- 
quarters and  wrote  to  Aremberg  to  join  him.  But  Noailles  was  at 
his  heels,  out-generalling  him  at  every  point ;  and  as  for  the  Austrian 
general,  he  wrote  back  to  say  that  as  Lord  Stair  had  "•  got  himself 
into  a  scrape  it  was  his  business  to  get  himself  out  of  it  as  well  as 
he  could."" 

The  truth  is.  Stair  was  old  and  incompetent,  and  Aremberg, 
besides  a  natural  jealousy,  had  but  a  poor  opinion  of  his  general- 
ship. In  a  day  or  two,  deprived  of  the  Austrian  help,  Stair  found 
himself  cut  off  from  his  magazines  at  Hanau  and  his  expected 
supplies  from  Franconia,  the  enemy  occupying  all  the  principal 
fords  and  passes  on  the  river. 

At  this  moment,  with  the  two  hostile  armies  only  a  few 
hundred  yards  from  one  another  (although  Stair's  intelligence 
department  was  so  bad  that  he  actually  did  not  know  of  the  close 
proximity  of  the  enemy  until  he  nearly  stumbled  on  them  in  a 
wood  when  he  went  to  reconnoitre  in  person),^  France  and  Great 
Britain  were  nominally  at  peace,  enacting  merely  the  part  of 
auxiliaries,  and  with  the  ministers  of  the  respective  countries  still 
resident  at  London  and  Paris. 

No  wonder  if  our  young  warriors,  like  many  older  and  wiser 
heads,  made  little  attempt  to  unravel  the  mazes  of  international 
politics,  but  were  content  to  accept  war  as  a  natui*al  dispensation 
for  the  exercise  of  mental  talents,  of  courage  and  mere  physical 
endurance. 

1  The  intelligence  department  in  Lord  Stair's  army  would  appear  to  have 
been  very  inefficient^  and  when  that  officer  became  acquainted  with  this  move 
of  the  French  he  determined  to  advance.  Accordingly  the  allied  army 
marched  to  Hellinback^  between  the  edge  of  the  forest  of  Darmstadt  and  the 
river  Main,  where  Lord  Stair  formed,  in  the  opinion  of  all  the  generals,  an 
impregnable  camp.  Want  of  supplies,  however,  and  the  need  of  securing 
the  communications  of  the  Upper  Main,  forced  him  to  move  on  again  to 
AschaflFenburg. — Townshend,  p.  11. 


Ill 

A    LIEUTENANT   AT    DETTINGEN 

Very  black  it  looked  for  the  British  under  Lord  Stair  on 
June  19,  1743,  when  King  George  II,  accompanied  by  the  youthful 
Duke  of  Cumberland  and  Lord  Cartaret,  arrived  from  Hanover  to 
join  the  army,  now  reduced  to  37,000  men,  on  half-rations,  and 
the  horses  of  the  cavalry  dying  for  want  of  forage.  They  were 
cooped  up  in  a  narrow  valley  bordering  the  river  Main,  between 
Aschaffenburg  and  a  village  called  Dettingen.  Two  days  later 
Wolfe  writes  his  father — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Camp  near  Aschaffenburg, 

June  2lst,  1743,  N.S. 

Dear  Sir, — Captain  Rainsford  joined  the  regiment  yester- 
day ;  he  brought  us  your  letter,  and  made  us  both  very  happy 
with  the  good  news  of  yours  and  my  mother's  health.  We  also 
got  a  letter  from  you  by  the  post.  Your  kindness  is  better  than 
our  best  behaviour  can  deserve,  and  we  are  infinitely  happy  in 
having  so  good  parents. 

My  brother  is  at  present  very  much  fatigued  with  the  hard 
duty  he  has  had  for  some  days  past.  He  was  on  a  party  last 
night,  and  saw  shot  fired  in  earnest,  but  was  in  no  great  danger, 
because  separated  from  the  enemy  by  the  river  Mayne.  The 
French  are  on  the  other  side  that  river,  about  a  mile  from  us. 
We  have  now  and  then  small  skirmishes  with  those  people. 
They  attacked  the  other  night  a  party  of  our  men,  but  were 
repulsed  with  the  loss  of  an  officer  and  four  or  five  men  killed, 
and  some  made  prisoners.  They  desert  prodigiously  ;  there 
were  yesterday  no  less  than  forty  deserters  in  the  camp,  that 
came  over  in  the  middle  of  the  day,  and  brought  with  them 
great  numbers  of  horses,  for  the  river  is  fordable.  'Tis  said  there 
are  2000  Austrian  Hussars  come  to  us  ;  I  fancy  they  will  harass 
them  a  little.  The  Hessians,  Pulteney's  and  Bligh's  regiments 
have  not  yet  joined  us,  as  likewise  some  Hanoverian  horse.  I 
believe  we  only  wait  for  them  to  attack  our  enemy.     We  shall 

30 


EVE   OF   DETTINGEN  31 

soon  know  what  we  are  to  do  now  that  our  King  is  come.  His 
Majesty  came  two  days  ago.  The  Duke  of  Cumberland  is 
declared  Major-General. 

The  Earl  of  Stair  had  like  to  have  been  hurt  by  an  escort  of 
two  squadrons  of  English  and  Hanoverian  cavalry  (when  he  was 
reconnoitring  the  enemy),  who  retreated  with  a  little  too  much 
haste  before  some  squadrons  of  French  hussars,  who,  upon  their 
retreat  fired  upon  them,  and  killed  a  trooper  and  dragoon  of 
ours.  The  reason  of  the  retreat,  as  I  heard,  was  this, — the  word 
being  given  to  a  sergeant  and  twelve  men,  who  were  an  advanced 
guard,  to  go  to  the  right  about,  the  whole  did  it,  thinking  they 
were  ordered,  and,  I  fancy,  at  the  odd  and  unexpected  appear- 
ance of  the  hussars  out  of  a  wood.  However,  they  were  rallied 
by  General  Cope,  and  would  have  charged  the  hussars  had  they 
been  permitted. 

Colonel  Duroure,  who  acts  as  Adjutant-General,  was  thrown 
from  his  horse  yesterday  by  a  Hanoverian  discharging  his  pistol 
just  by  him,  and  was  much  bruised.  We  are  all  sorry  for  it. 
He  has  been  very  good  to  his  ensigns  this  march ;  we  have  had 
the  use  of  his  canteens  whenever  he  thought  we  had  occasion  for 
them.  We  are  now  near  forty  miles  from  Frankfort,  which  we 
marched  in  two  days  and  two  nights,  with  about  nine  or  ten 
hours'  halt,  in  order  to  gain  a  pass  that  is  here,  and  now  in  our 
possession.  The  men  were  almost  starved  in  that  march.  They 
nor  the  officers  had  little  more  than  bread  and  water  to  live  on, 
and  that  very  scarce,  because  they  had  not  the  ammunition 
bread  the  day  it  was  due.     But  I  believe  it  could  not  be  helped. 

We  have  left  a  very  fine  country  to  come  to  the  worst  I  ever 
saw.  I  believe  it  is  in  the  Prince  of  Hesse''s  dominions.  The 
King  is  in  a  little  palace  in  such  a  town  as  I  believe  he  never 
lived  in  before.  It  was  ruined  by  the  Hanoverians,  and  every- 
thing almost  that  was  in  it  carried  off  by  them,  some  time 
before  we  came.  They  and  our  men  now  live  by  marauding.  I 
hope  we  shall  not  stay  here  long,  if  we  do  I  don't  know  how  it 
will  be  possible  to  get  provisions.  The  French  are  burning  all 
the  villages  on  the  other  side  of  the  Mayne,  and  we  ravaging  the 
country  on  this  side. 

I  am  now  doing,  and  have  done  ever  since  we  encamped,  the 
duty  of  an  adjutant.  I  was  afraid  when  I  first  undertook  it 
that  the  fatigue  would  be  too  much  for  me,  but  now  I  am  use 
to  it,  I  think  it  will  agree  very  well  with  me,  at  least  I  hope  so. 
Brigadier  Huske  inquires  often  if  I  have  heard  from  you  lately. 


32     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

and  desires  his  compliments  to  you.  He  is  extremely  civil  to 
me,  and  I  am  much  obliged  to  him.  He  has  desired  his  Brigade- 
Major,  Mr.  Blakeney,^  who  is  a  very  good  man,  to  instruct  me 
all  he  can.  My  brother  intends  writing  very  soon.  We  both 
join  in  love  and  duty  to  you  and  my  mother,  and  I  am,  dear  Sir, 
Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

They  were  always  ready  enough — then,  and  since,  in  the  army 
— to  put  extra  work  upon  any  one,  however  young,  who  showed 
any  alacrity  for  work. 

It  was  clear  even  to  the  eyes  of  the  new  acting  adjutant  that 
something  must  be  done  to  rescue  the  British  army  from  the  pre- 
dicament into  which  the  incapacity  of  its  commander  had  thrust 
it.  It  was  decided,  although  by  no  means  a  simple  move,  in  view 
of  the  superiority  both  in  numbers  and  position  of  the  enemy,  to 
retreat  upon  Hanau,  where  were  the  magazines  and  reinforcements 
of  Hessians.  But  Noailles  was  on  the  alert;  he  at  once  became 
apprised  of  the  plan,  and  under  cover  of  diversions  by  his  hussars, 
threw  a  couple  more  bridges  across  the  Main,  making  ready  to 
pounce  upon  the  foe,  whom  he  had,  as  he  believed,  caught  in  a 
trap.  On  June  26  (N.S.),  Lord  Stair,  at  AschafFenburg,  issued  the 
following  orders — 

After  Tattoo  this  night  the  tents  of  the  whole  army  to  be 
struck  without  any  noise  and  all  the  baggage  and  artillery  to 
hold  themselves  in  readiness  to  march  ;  the  army  to  remain  under 
arms  in  front  of  their  encampments. 

To-morrow  at  break  of  day  every  regiment  to  march  into 
their  new  ground ;  and  as  soon  as  the  army  are  arrived  in  their 
new  camp,  they  are  to  remain  under  arms  in  front  of  the  new 
ground  in  the  same  manner  as  they  did  the  night  preceding  till 
further  orders,  keeping  a  profound  silence,  no  fires  being  suffered 
in  the  camp. 

Stair  supposed  the  French  would  attack  from  the  AschafFenburg 
side.  All  his  injunctions  of  secrecy  were  useless,  for  Noailles  knew, 
quite  as  soon  as  Stair's  own  generals,  that  the  British  intended 
marching  on  the  night  of  June  26.  And  knowing  this,  he  ordered 
his  nephew,  the  Due  de  Grammont,  to  cross  the  Main  at  Seilenstadt 
with  30,000  troops  and  entrench  himself  at  Dettingen,  thus  blocking 
the  British  retreat.     Moreover,  the  moment  the  British  abandoned 

^  A  nephew  of  General  Blakeney. 


THE   FRENCH   OPEN  FIRE 


33 


Aschaffenburg,  Noailles  poured  12,000  men  into  it,  Stair  having 
courteously  refrained  from  blowing  up  the  bridge  in  his  rear.  At 
four  o'clock  in  the  morning  of  June  27,  Duroiu-e's  and  the  other 


regiments  began  their  march  to  Dettingen.  At  seven  a  French 
battery  posted  at  a  small  chapel  near  Stockstadt  opened  fire  on 
the  British  cavalry,  putting  the  baggage-train  into  a  panic,  the 

D 


34    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

drivers  escaping  from  their  wagons  into  the  woods.  A  general 
loot  ensued.  At  the  beginning  of  the  bombardment  King  George 
was  at  the  rear.  As  it  grew  hotter  he  rode  up  to  the  head  in  full 
view  of  his  troops,  who  cheered  him  enthusiastically.  The  French 
were  now  visible,  drawn  up  in  battle  array  between  Dettingen 
and  Welsheim,  all  in  white  uniforms  and  bearing  white  standards. 

It  was  a  fine  day ;  a  few  fleecy  clouds  flitted  across  the  sky. 
Picturesque  was  the  scene,  illumined  by  the  June  sun,  the  red  coats 
of  the  British,  the  black  cuirasses  and  helmets  of  the  German 
cavalry,  the  blue  jackets  and  red  breeches  of  the  Uhlans,  and  the 
green  and  red  of  the  Hungarian  hussars.  James  Wolfe  was  about 
to  suffer  his  baptism  of  fire.  By  a  singular  coincidence  Jeffrey 
Amherst,  his  destined  commander-in-chief  in  America,  Robert 
Monckton  and  George  Townshend,  his  second  and  third  in 
command  at  Quebec,  were  also  present. 

It  was  twelve  o'clock.  The  French  artillery  had  been  firing  all 
the  morning  and  doing  disastrous  execution.  All  was  now  in 
readiness  for  King  George  and  the  Allies  to  advance.  The  Due  de 
Grammont  with  30,000  men  held  the  defile,  an  impregnable  position 
and  fatal  to  the  British  as  long  as  he  remained  on  the  defensive. 
His  chief  Noailles  on  the  other  side  of  the  river  could  hardly 
believe  his  eyes  when  he  saw  Grammonfs  troops  moving  towards 
the  British.  The  impetuous  youth  could  not  wait :  the  sight  of 
the  enemy  had  proved  too  much  for  his  discretion.  Noailles  was 
in  despair.  "  Grammont,"  he  cried,  "  has  ruined  all  my  plans ! " 
He  spoke  truly,  for  Grammont  had  voluntarily  quitted  his 
advantageous  position  to  meet  the  Allies  in  the  plain.  The  latter, 
cheering  and  full  of  zeal,  made  ready  for  the  impact.  Royal 
George  galloped  down  the  line,  flourishing  his  sword,  and  addressing 
the  British .  infantry,  called  out,  "  Now,  boys,  now  for  the  honour 
of  England.  Advance  boldly  and  the  French  will  soon  run !  "*' 
The  King  had  chosen  his  charger  with  less  felicity  than  his  words  : 
the  animal  began  rearing  and  plunging  desperately.  Fearing  the 
fate  which  overtook  many  officers  that  day,  George  dismounted 
and  remained  on  foot,  sword  in  hand,  throughout  the  battle.^  As 
the  Allies  advanced  the  French  fell  back ;  their  cavalry  came  on 
impetuously,  and  General  Clayton  ordered  Bland's  Dragoons  to 
charge.     Bland's  Dragoons  (now  the  13th  Hussars)  obeyed,  but  so 

^  We  need  not  believe  the  malicious  story  circulated  by  Voltaire  that  the 
King-  went  through  all  the  sword  drill  he  had  been  taught  by  his  fencing- 
master,  lunging  in  excitement  at  imaginary  opponents,  alternately  advancing 
and  recoiling,  and  perspiring  with  his  harmless  exertions. 


THE  FURY  OF   BATTLE  35 

fierce  was  the  onset  of  the  French  Gens  d'Armes  that  if  a  battalion 
of  British  infantry  had  not  intervened  the  dragoons  would  have 
been  cut  to  pieces.  Cavalry  charge  succeeded  cavalry  charge  before 
the  chance  of  the  infantry  came.  Wolfe  busily  doing  an  adjutant's 
duties  on  the  field,  was  in  the  very  thick  of  the  fight,  as  was  his 
brothei.  The  latter  wrote  three  days  afterwards  to  his  mother 
the  following  account — 

Edward  Wolfe  to  his  Mother. 

June  SOth,  1743. 

Dearest  Madam, — I  take  the  very  first  opportunity  I  can 
to  acquaint  you  that  my  brother  and  self  escaped  in  the  engage- 
ment we  had  with  the  French,  the  16th  of  June  last  [O.S.],  and 
thank  God,  are  as  well  as  ever  we  were  in  our  lives,  after  not 
only  being  cannonaded  two  hours  and  three-quarters,  and  fighting 
with  small  arms  two  hours  and  one-quarter,  but  lay  the  two 
following  nights  upon  our  arms,  whilst  it  rained  for  about  twenty 
hours  in  the  same  time ;  yet  are  ready  and  as  capable  to  do  the 
same  again.  We  lost  one  captain  and  a  lieutenant.  Captain 
Rainsford  is  very  well  and  not  wounded  ;  he  desires  you  will 
send  his  wife  word  of  this  as  soon  as  you  hear  it.  Our  Colonel 
had  a  horse  shot  under  him,  but  escaped  himself.  The  King 
was  present  in  the  field.  The  Duke  of  Cumberland  behaved 
charmingly.  .  .  .  Duke  d''Aremberg  is  dangerously  wounded. 
We  took  two  or  three  general  officers  and  two  princes  of  the 
blood  and  wounded  Marshal  Noailles. 

Our  regiment  has  got  a  great  deal  of  honour,  for  we  were  in 
the  middle  of  the  first  line,  and  in  the  greatest  danger.  .  .  .  My 
brother  has  wrote  to  my  father  and  I  believe  has  given  him  a 
small  account  of  the  battle,  so  I  hope  you  will  excuse  it  me. 
The  Emperor  is  come  to  Frankfort  and  we  are  encamped  about 
two  leagues  from  it ;  and  it  is  said  that  the  King  is  to  meet  him 
there  and  that  there's  a  peace  to  be  made  between  the  Queen  of 
Hungary  and  the  Emperor. 

I  hope  I  shall  see  you  some  time  or  another  and  then  tell 
you  more ;  but  think  now  that  I  have  given  you  joy  and  concern 
enough.    Pray,  my  duty  to  my  dearest  father,  who  I  hope  is  well. 
I  am,  dearest  Madam, 

Your  dutiful  and  AiFectionate  Son, 

E.  Wolfe. 

Pray  be  so  good  as  to  excuse  my  writing  for  this  time,  I  am 
in  such  a  hurry  to  send  you  this  news. 

D  2 


36     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Not  until  a  full  week  after  the  battle  was  James  able  to  send 
the  following  report  of  his  first  engagement  to  his  father — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Hochst,  July  ^th,  N.S.,  1743. 

Dear  Sir, — This  is  the  first  time  that  I  have  been  able  or 
have  had  the  least  time  to  write,  otherwise  I  should  have  done 
it  when  my  brother  did.  The  fatigue  I  had  the  day  we  fought 
and  the  day  after  made  me  very  much  out  of  order,  and  I  was 
obliged  to  keep  my  tent  for  two  days.  Bleeding  was  of  great 
service  to  me,  and  I  am  now  as  well  as  ever. 

The  army  was  drawn  out  this  day  se'nnight  between  a  wood 
and  a  river  Maine,  near  a  little  village,  called  Dettingen,  in  five 
lines — two  of  foot  and  three  of  horse.  The  cannon  on  both 
sides  began  to  play  about  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning,  and  we 
were  exposed  to  the  fire  of  theirs  (said  to  be  about  fifty  pieces) 
for  near  three  hours,  a  great  part  of  which  flanked  us  terribly 
from  the  other  side  of  the  water.  The  French  were  all  the  while 
drawn  up  in  sight  of  us  on  this  side.  About  twelve  o'clock  we 
marched  towards  them ;  they  advanced  likewise,  and,  as  near  as 
I  can  guess,  the  fight  began  about  one.  The  Gens  d'Armes,  or 
Mousquetaires  Gris,  attacked  the  first  line,  composed  of  nine 
regiments  of  English  foot,  and  four  or  five  of  Austrians,  and 
some  Hanoverians.  They  broke  through  the  Scotch  Fusileers, 
who  they  began  to  attack  upon;  but  before  they  got  to  the 
second  line,  out  of  two  hundred  there  were  not  forty  living,  so 
they  wheeled,  and  came  between  the  first  and  second  line  (except 
an  officer  with  a  standard,  and  four  or  five  men,  who  broke 
through  the  second  line  and  were  taken  by  some  of  Hawley's 
regiment  of  Dragoons),  and  about  twenty  of  them  escaped  to 
their  army,  riding  through  an  interval  that  was  made  for  our 
Horse  to  advance.  These  unhappy  men  were  of  the  first  families 
in  France.  Nothing,  I  believe,  could  be  more  rash  than  their 
undertaking. 

The  second  attack  was  made  on  the  left  by  their  Horse 
against  ours,  which  advanced  for  the  first  time.  Neither  side 
did  much,  for  they  both  retreated ;  and  our  Horse  had  like 
to  have  broke  our  first  line  in  the  confusion.  The  Horse  fired 
their  pistols,  which,  if  they  had  let  alone,  and  attacked  the 
French  with  their  swords,  being  so  much  stronger  and  heavier, 
they  would  certainly  have  beat  them.  Their  excuse  for  re- 
treating— they   could   not   make  their   horses   stand   the   fire ! 


DETTINGEN   DESCRIBED  37 

The  third  and  last  attack  was  made  by  the  foot  on  both  sides. 
We  advanced  towards  one  another;  our  men  in  high  spirits, 
and  very  impatient  for  fighting,  being  elated  with  beating  the 
French  Horse,  part  of  which  advanced  towards  us ;  while  the 
rest  attacked  our  Horse,  but  were  soon  driven  back  by  the  great 
fire  we  gave  them.  The  Major  and  I  (for  we  had  neither  Colonel 
nor  Lieutenant-Colonel),  before  they  came  near,  were  employed  in 
begging  and  ordering  the  men  not  to  fire  at  too  great  a  distance, 
but  to  keep  it  till  the  enemy  should  come  near  us ;  but  to  little 
purpose.  The  whole  fired  when  they  thought  they  could  reach 
them,  which  had  like  to  have  ruined  us.  We  did  very  little 
execution  with  it.  As  soon  as  the  French  saw  we  presented 
they  all  fell  down,  and  when  we  had  fired  they  all  got  up,  and 
marched  close  to  us  in  tolerable  good  order,  and  gave  us  a 
brisk  fire,  which  put  us  into  some  disorder  and  made  us  give 
way  a  little,  particularly  ours  and  two  or  three  more  regiments, 
who  were  in  the  hottest  of  it.  However,  we  soon  rallied  again, 
and  attacked  them  with  great  fury,  which  gained  us  a  complete 
victory,  and  forced  the  enemy  to  retire  in  great  haste.  'Twas 
luck  that  we  did  give  way  a  little,  for  our  men  were  loading  all 
the  while,  and  it  gave  room  for  an  Austrian  regiment  to  move 
into  an  interval,  rather  too  little  before,  who  charged  the  enemy 
with  great  bravery  and  resolution.  So  soon  as  the  French  re- 
treated, the  line  halted,  and  we  got  the  sad  news  of  the  death 
of  as  good  and  brave  a  man  as  any  amongst  us.  General  Clayton, 
who  was  killed  by  a  musquet  ball  in  the  last  attack.  His  death 
gave  us  all  sorrow,  so  great  was  the  opinion  we  had  of  him,  and 
was  the  hindrance  of  anything  further  being  done  that  day.  He 
had,  'tis  said,  orders  for  pursuing  the  enemy,  and  if  we  had 
followed  them,  as  was  expected,  it  is  the  opinion  of  most  people, 
that  of  the  27,000  men  they  brought  over  the  Maine,  they  would 
not  have  repassed  with  half  that  number.  When  they  retreated, 
several  pieces  of  our  artillery  played  upon  them,  and  made  ter- 
rible havoc ;  at  last  we  followed  them,  but  too  late ;  they  had 
almost  all  passed  the  river.  One  of  the  bridges  broke,  and  in 
the  hurry  abundance  were  drowned.  A  great  number  of  their 
officers  and  men  were  taken  prisoners.  Their  loss  is  computed 
to  be  between  six  and  seven  thousand  men,  and  ours  three 
thousand. 

His  Majesty  was  in  the  midst  of  the  fight ;  and  the  Duke 
behaved  as  bravely  as  a  man  could  do.  He  had  a  musquet-shot 
through  the  calf  of  his  leg.     I  had  several  times  the  honour  of 


38    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

speaking  with  him  just  as  the  battle  began,  and  was  often  afraid 
of  his  being  dash'd  to  pieces  by  the  cannon-balls.  He  gave  his 
orders  with  a  great  deal  of  calmness,  and  seemed  quite  uncon- 
cerned. The  soldiers  were  in  high  delight  to  have  him  so  near 
them.  Captain  Rainsford  behaved  with  the  greatest  conduct 
and  bravery  in  the  world.  I  sometimes  thought  I  had  lost  poor 
Ned,  when  I  saw  arms,  legs,  and  heads  beat  off  close  by  him. 
He  is  called  "  The  Old  Soldier,""  and  very  deservedly.  A  horse 
I  rid  of  the  Colonel's  at  the  first  attack  was  shot  in  one  of  his 
hinder  legs,  and  threw  me ;  so  I  was  obliged  to  do  the  duty 
of  an  adjutant  all  that  and  the  next  day  on  foot,  in  a  pair  of 
heavy  boots. 

I  lost  with  the  horse,  furniture  and  pistols  which  cost  me 
ten  ducats ;  but  three  days  after  the  battle  got  the  horse  again, 
with  the  ball  in  him, — and  he  is  now  almost  well  again, — but 
without  furniture  and  pistols. 

A  brigade  of  English  and  another  of  Hanoverians  are  in 
garrison  in  this  town,  which  we  are  fortifying  daily.  We  are 
detached  from  the  grand  army,  which  is  encamped  between 
Frankfort  and  Hanau,  about  twelve  miles  off. 

They  talk  of  a  second  battle  soon.  Count  Khevenhuller  and 
Marshal  Broglie  are  expected  to  join  the  two  armies  in  a  few 
days.  We  are  very  well  situated  at  present,  and  in  a  plentiful 
country.  Had  we  stayed  a  few  days  longer  at  Aschaffenburg 
we  had  been  all  starved,  for  the  French  would  have  cut  off  our 
communication  with  Frankfort.  Poor  Captain  Merry  dan  is 
killed.  Pray  mine  and  my  brother's  duty  to  my  mother.  We 
hope  you  are  both  perfectly  well. 
I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Such  was  the  famous  battle  of  Dettingen.  A  hollow  triumph 
had  been  obtained,  when  so  little  lacked  to  make  it  an  effective 
victory.  The  French  had  been  repulsed  across  the  river  with  4000 
killed  and  wounded,  the  losses  of  the  Allies  being,  perhaps,  half 
that  number.  Duroure's  had  twenty-nine  officers  and  soldiers 
killed  and  sixty-eight  wounded,  more  than  any  other  regiment. 
"  The  French,  to  the  surprise  of  every  one,"  wrote  one  participant, 
"were  suffered  to  escape  unmolested.  The  King  halted  and  the  scene 
of  action  and  military  ardour  was  suddenly  turned  into  a  Court  circle 
— His  Majesty  was  congratulated  by  every  military  courtesan  on 


APPOINTED   LIEUTENANT  39 

horseback,  on  the  glorious  Event — the  Hanoverian  Generals  gal- 
loped up  with  their  reports — questions  innumerable  were  asked  and 
reports  made ;  the  British  Generals  returning  lamented  the  loss  of 
so  interesting  a  crisis  and  some  of  them  ineffectually  represented 
upon  it,  yet  the  Enemy  was  suffered  to  quietly  repass  their  bridge 
over  the  Mayne  !  although  6000  Hessians  were  at  Hanau  in  perfect 
order  for  Action — the  greatest  part  of  the  British  army  with  great 
solemnity  then  passed  the  rivulet  and  encamped  on  the  ground  to 
the  west  of  it  where  the  Field  Marshal  de  Noailles  had  left  his  first 
position.^ 

After  the  battle,  the  Allies  spent  the  night  in  the  open  where 
they  had  fought.  The  rain  came  down  in  torrents,  increasing  the 
sufferings  of  the  wounded.  At  daybreak  the  march — or  more 
truly  the  flight — to  Hanau  was  begun,  leaving  the  maimed  and 
dying  to  the  tender  mercies  of  the  French,  who  behaved  with  great 
consideration.  By  this  time  Stair  was  for  renewing  the  attack,  but 
the  King  and  his  friends  were  in  no  mind  to  risk  another  battle. 
In  the  afternoon  they  reached  Hanau,  where  an  entry  in  Lord 
Stair's  order-book  explains  Acting- Adjutant  Wolfe's  delay  in 
writing  home  after  the  battle — 

June  IQth,  1743 J  Hannau  Camp. 
The  commanding  officers  of  troops  to  examine  into  the  state 
of  their  troops  and  to  make  a  return  of  what  men  and  horses  are 
now  fit  for  service,  what  condition  their  arms  are  in,  what  camp 
necessaries  they  have  lost  the  day  of  the  action  and  are  wanting 
in  each  troop.  This  examination  to  be  made  this  day  and  the 
return  to  be  given  in  by  eight  o'clock  to-morrow  morning  to  the 
adjutant. 

Wolfe's  ability,  despite  his  years,  and  it  must  be  remembered 
that  he  was  but  sixteen  and  a  half,  was  shown  so  conspicuously  at 
Dettingen  that  a  fortnight  later  (July  13,  N.S.)  the  King  was 
pleased  to  appoint  him  adjutant  of  his  regiment.  Before  the 
month  was  out  at  Hanau  he  had  got  his  commission  as  lieutenant. 
Amongst  those  who  had  noted  specially  the  conduct  of  Wolfe  on 
the  field  was  the  young  Duke  of  Cumberland,  who  at  the  age  of 
twenty-two  already  exhibited  a  rare  talent  for  command.  It  is  the 
custom  to  give  royal  princes  honorary  military  titles,  but  of  the 
many  such  who  have  received  their  major-generalships  with  their 
majority,  few  had  seemed  more  likely  to  become  worthy  of  such 
high  military  rank  than  Prince  William  Henry. 
^  Townshend's  Journal. 


40     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Dettingen  revealed  the  weaknesses  of  the  British  Army,  a  thing 
not  to  be  wondered  at  after  thirty  years  of  peace.  But  the  moral 
and  political  effect  of  the  battle  upon  the  situation  was  marked. 
While  Noailles  was  recovering  at  Offenbach,  Prince  Charles  with 
64,000  Austrians  advanced  upon  him,  compelling  his  rapid  retreat 
across  the  Rhine  into  Alsace,  blowing  up  his  magazines  as  he  went. 
The  Allies  made  no  attempt  in  pursuit,  although  again  Lord  Stair 
urged  it  upon  the  King  and  the  military  cabal  with  which  he  was 
surrounded.  They  moved  on  quietly  and  safely  to  Worms,  where 
a  new  camp  was  formed.  From  hence  Lieutenant  Wolfe  writes  to 
his  father — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Camp  near  Worms,  Sept.  1,  N.S.,  1743. 

Dear  Sir, — By  a  letter  I  received  from  you  some  days  ago, 
I  have  the  happiness  and  satisfaction  to  hear  that  you  and  my 
mother  are  well ;  but  it  being  my  brother's  turn  to  write  (which 
we  intend  to  do  in  turns  every  Saturday),  I  put  off  answering 
until  to-day. 

The  army  passed  the  Rhine  the  23rd  [N.S.],  a  little  below 
Mentz,  and  came  to  this  ground  yesterday.  It  was  possessed  by 
the  French  before  the  action  of  Dettingen.  The  fortifications 
of  the  Swiss  camp  (who  would  not  pass  the  Rhine)  are  just  by, 
and  those  where  the  bridge  was  that  the  French  went  upon  is 
close  to  it.  The  boats  that  made  our  bridge  below  Mentz  are 
expected  here  to-morrow  for  the  Dutch  troops  to  come  over, 
who,  we  hear,  will  be  with  us  in  six  or  seven  days.  There  are 
numbers  of  reports  relating  to  Prince  Charles's  army,  so  that  I 
won't  pretend  to  send  you  any  account  of  it,  only  that  most 
people  think  he  has  not  passed  the  Rhine.  The  French  are  now 
encamped  between  Landau  and  Wissemberg.  Captain  Rainsford 
says  if  they  have  any  spirit  they  will  attack  us  here  before  we 
are  joined  by  the  Dutch,  and  so  I  believe  our  Commanders  think, 
for  they  have  just  given  orders  to  have  all  encumbrances  removed 
from  before  the  front  of  each  regiment,  in  order  to  turn  out  at 
a  minute's  warning,  and  a  chain  of  sentries  are  to  be  immediately 
placed  in  front  of  the  camp.  Our  camp  is  tolerably  strong ;  we 
are  open  in  the  front,  with  hills,  from  which  cannon  cannot  do 
us  much  harm.  At  the  bottom  of  these  hills  is  a  little  rivulet ; 
in  our  rear  is  the  Rhine.  The  left  is  secured  by  the  town  of 
Worms,  and  the  right  is  open ;  but  neither  the  front  nor  right 
have  greater  openings  than  we  have  troops  to  fill  them  up ;  so  I 


STAIR'S   RESIGNATION  41 

believe  we  are  pretty  safe.  I  am  just  now  told  that  a  party  of 
our  hussars  have  taken  a  French  grand  guard ;  they  have  killed 
the  captain  and  thirteen  men,  and  have  brought  sixty-four  to 
Worms.  Fm  convinced  of  the  truth,  because  some  gentlemen 
of  our  regiment  saw  them  go  along  the  line,  and  are  going  to 
buy  some  of  the  horses.  I  cannot  tell  if  the  Duke  of  Cumber- 
land knows  what  you  mentioned  in  your  letter ;  I  have  never  had 
any  opportunity  of  inquiring.  It  is  but  a  few  days  that  he  is 
come  abroad  :  he  has  marched  since  we  crossed  the  Rhine,  at  the 
head  of  his  second  line  of  English,  which  is  his  post.  He  is 
very  brisk,  and  quite  cured  of  his  wound.  His  presence  en- 
courages the  troops,  and  makes  them  ready  to  undertake  any- 
thing, having  so  brave  a  man  at  the  head  of  them.  I  hope  some 
day  or  other  to  have  the  honour  of  knowing  him  better  than  I 
do  now ;  'tis  what  I  wish  as  much  as  anything  in  the  world 
(except  the  pleasure  which  I  hope  to  enjoy  when  it  shall  please 
God),  that  of  seeing  my  dear  friends  at  Greenwich.  Poor 
Colonel  Duroure  is,  I  am  afraid,  in  great  danger ;  we  left  him  on 
the  other  side  of  the  Rhine  very  ill  with  a  bloody  flux.  Our 
major  is  at  the  same  place  likewise,  very  much  out  of  order. 
Our  colonel  was  never  more  wanted  to  command  us  than  now. 

I  shall  say  nothing  now  of  the  behaviour  of  the  Blue  Guards ; 
I  wish  they  may  do  better  next  time,  and  I  don"'t  doubt  but  they 
will.  It  would  give  me  a  great  deal  of  sorrow  if  they  did 
not. 

We  have  a  great  deal  of  sickness  amongst  us,  so  I  believe 
the  sooner  we  engage  (if  it  is  to  be)  the  better.  I  hope  you, 
Sir,  and  my  mother  are  perfectly  well.  I  heartily  wish  it,  and 
that  you  may  continue  so.  My  brother  joins  with  me  in  duty 
and  love  to  both. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Three  days  later  Stair,  whose  position  had  been  one  of  great 
difficulty  ever  since  the  King's  arrival  on  the  scene,  resigned  his 
command.  Yet  he  had  his  adherents  still.  One  officer  writing 
home  said,  "  If  the  general's  advice  had  been  followed  we  should 
have  been  half  way  to  Paris  by  now."  His  resignation  put  an 
end  to  all  notion  of  further  engagements  with  the  enemy,  and  soon 
afterwards  the  King  and  his  suite  returned  to  London  to  revel  in 
the  applause  of  the  multitude,  who  magnified  the  business  into 


42    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

a  glorious  victory.  While  odes  and  Te  Deums  were  thus  the 
order  of  the  day  at  home,  the  camp  at  Worms  was  broken  up, 
Field  Marshal  Wade  being  appointed  Stair's  successor  as  com- 
mander-in-chief of  the  British  forces  in  Flanders.  The  fifth 
division  (which  included  Duroure's),  under  Lord  Rothes,  marched 
to  Brussels,  which  they  reached  November  22,  and  from  thence  to 
Ostend  for  the  winter,  much  to  our  lieutenant's  disgust.  Edward, 
whose  health  had  considerably  suffered  by  the  campaign,  got  leave 
to  go  home  during  the  dull  season,  but  his  brother's  services  as 
adjutant  were  too  indispensable  for  him  to  be  spared  for  any  length 
of  time.  There  was  a  great  shortage  of  officers,  and  being  in- 
tensely ambitious  he  dared  not  plead  any  excuse  for  a  remission  of 
his  duties.  That  his  promotion  had  come  full  early  he  well  knew  : 
it  had  doubtless  occasioned  comment :  his  great  object  was  to 
deserve  it.  So  he  passed  the  whole  winter  in  Ostend  uncomplain- 
ingly, making  himself  meanwhile  a  thorough  master  of  his  work 
and  winning  the  affection  of  both  his  fellow-officers  and  the  men. 
Christmas  and  his  birthday  found  him  at  Ostend.  In  February  he 
heard  with  joy  that  his  father  had  been  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
brigadier-general.  Thinking  that  all  the  Wolfes  ought  to  have  a 
share  in  titular  advancement,  he  pleasantly  promoted  his  brother, 
still  under  the  paternal  roof  in  London,  to  a  captaincy  in  an 
amusing  letter  he  wrote  in  the  spring — 

James  to  Edward  Wolfe. 

Ostend,  March  21,  O.S.,  1743. 

Dear  Ned, — I  got  yours  yesterday  from  Dover  by  a  gentle- 
man who  was  so  good  to  take  it  up  and  bring  it  me  from  thence. 
I  expected  to  have  had  my  box  at  the  same  time,  for  I  thought 
our  going  to  England  (or  rather  the  appearance  of  it)  was 
entirely  laid  aside.  I  shall  be  obliged  to  you  if  you  will  take 
the  first  opportunity  of  sending  it.  I  want  it  very  much.  I  have 
not  a  pair  of  boots  I  can  wear.  The  regiment  will  very  soon  be 
out  to  exercise.  You  and  I  are  to  be  tented  together  next  cam- 
paign. The  marquee  is  making  and  will  cost  us  about  £^.  I 
shall  send  to  Ghent  very  soon  to  bespeak  a  cart,  which  with 
harness  for  two  horses  I  am  told  will  come  to  ten  pounds  or 
thereabouts.  I  shall  get  everything  I  find  necessary  for  us  ;  so 
you  need  not  be  in  any  pain  about  your  equipage.  I  think 
Rainsford  is  not  brutal  enough  to  send  you  from  England,  who 
have  done  all  his  duty  this  three  or  four  months  ;  sure  he  knows 
better.     I  have  a  better  opinion  of  his  understanding. 


'THE  FAIR  SEX'  43 

I  hear  of  no  promotion  in  the  regiment,  except  that  "  Thick- 
head "  1  has  got  his  father's  company.  Stephens  is  certainly  going 
out,  he  is  to  be  surgeon  to  the  two  troop  of  Horse  Grenadiers  and 
sell  his  employments  with  us  ;  so  you  will  get  a  step  by  that. 
Ryder  I  believe  will  buy  the  Surgeonship.  I  am  glad  you  find 
the  mantua-maker  pretty.  I  thought  so,  I  assure  you  ;  I  give 
up  all  pretensions.  Pray  use  her  kindly.  Doubtless  you  love 
the  company  of  the  fair  sex.  If  you  should  happen  to  go  where 
Mrs.  Seabourg  is,  pray  don't  fall  in  love  with  her,  I  can't  give 
her  up  tamely,  remember  I  am  your  rival.  I  am  also  in  some 
pain  about  Miss  Warde.  Admire  anywhere  else  and  welcome, 
— except  the  widow  Bright.  Miss  Paterson  is  yours,  if  you  like 
her,  and  so  is  the  little  staring  girl  in  the  chapel  ^  with  twenty 
thousand  pounds.  Pray  give  my  duty  to  my  mother.  I  hope 
her  cold  is  well.  The  plum  cake  she  gave  me  was  very  good  and 
of  singular  service  to  me.  I  do  not  believe  the  box  would  hold 
any,  but — they  say  'tis  particularly  wholesome  at  Ostend  ! 

I  am,  dear  Ned,  sincerely  yours, 

J.  Wolfe. 

N'oublie  point  mes  compliments  a  les  adorables  femmes  que 
je  viens  de  nommer. 

To  Capt.  Wolfe  at  Brig.  Wolfe  s 

in  old  Burlington  Street, 

Burlington  Gardens, 

London. 

"  Pray  give  my  duty  to  my  mother,"  may  seem  a  somewhat 
cold  and  formal  phrase  from  a  youth  of  seventeen,  even  though  he 
be  a  seasoned  soldier  and  an  adjutant,  but  we  must  bear  in  mind 
the  epistolary  spirit  and  filial  ceremony  of  the  age,  which  tempers 
much  that  to  us  seems  callous  and  anti-fervid.  There  still  remains  a 
residue,  however,  in  Wolfe's  letters  to  his  mother  which  discloses 
something  of  the  peculiar  character  of  their  relations.  We  seem 
to  see  a  good  deal  of  the  antique  Roman  spirit  about  them  both  : 
each  sincerely  loved  the  other,  both  were  chary  of  expressions  of 
relaxing  endearment.  Wolfe  himself  usually  takes  a  stern,  self- 
contained  tone  towards  his  mother,  easily  to  be  mistaken  now-a-days 
for  priggishness.     But  James  Wolfe  was  no  prig :  moreover,  his 

1  *^^  Thickhead,"  Lieutenant  Romer,  whom  Edward  Wolfe  succeeded. 
—Wright. 

■^  Tlie  chapel  of  Greenwich  Hospital,  where  the  Wolfe  family  at  one  period 
attended  service. 


44    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

effusion  of  natural  spirits  is  sometimes  notable,  as  in  the  last 
quoted  letter. 

Shortly  after  this  Wolfe  got  his  commission  as  captain,  and 
was  transferred  to  BarrelPs  Regiment  (the  4th  Foot),  and  his 
brother  rejoined  Duroure's  as  lieutenant.  Both  regiments  marched 
away  to  join  the  army  now  assembled  on  the  banks  of  the 
Scheldt  under  Marshal  Wade,  consisting  of  22,000  British,  16,000 
Hanoverians,  18,000  Austrians,  and  20,000  Dutch— in  all,  76,000 
troops.  Afterwards  they  were  reinforced  by  18,000  Dutch. 
While  this  large  army  remained  inactive  on  the  Scheldt,  the 
French  under  Marshal  Saxe,  after  being  concentrated  at  Lille, 
proceeded  to  overrun  the  Netherlands. 

Wade  was,  as  we  see  now,  a  pitiful  sort  of  general,  more  at 
home  in  road-building  than  in  planning  and  fighting  battles.  He 
considered  himself  too  weak  to  offer  any  effectual  barrier  to  the 
French,  who  took  Courtrai,  Menin  and  Ypres  successively  before 
their  English  opponent  was  spurred  forward  to  action  by  in- 
dignant orders  from  home.  The  surrender  of  Ypres  was  especially 
disgraceful,  and  Wade  became  so  frightened  that  he  sent  away  his 
plate  for  safe-keeping  at  Antwerp,  a  fact  well  known  to  British 
officers  and  men.  A  letter  written  by  Edward  Wolfe,  the  last  of 
the  brief  series  written  by  that  hapless  young  officer,  throws  some 
light  on  the  situation — 

Edward  Wolfe  to  his  Father, 

Camp  near  Berlingham,  June  17th,  1744. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  sorry  to  inform  you  of  so  disagreeable 
piece  of  news  as  Ypres  being  surrendered  after  a  siege  of  eight 
days.  No  doubt  but  it  gives  great  spirits  to  our  enemy,  who, 
'tis  said,  have  lost  very  few  men  ;  but  I  have  not  yet  heard  their 
loss. 

We  have  some  expectations  of  their  visiting  us  next. 
They  have  a  party  of  men  very  near  our  advanced  guard,  on  the 
other  side  of  the  Scheldt.  However,  we  are  prepared  for  them  ; 
so  they  won't  find  it  very  easy  to  pass  that  river.  We  suspect 
the  designs  of  Duke  d'Harcourt,  with  his  army  between  thirty 
and  forty  thousand  men,  who,  'tis  said,  are  encamped  between 
Mons  and  Mauberge.  Our  last  motion,  I  am  told,  retarded  the 
siege  of  Ypres  two  days.  They,  expecting  we  were  coming 
towards  them,  were  under  arms  a  quarter  of  an  hour  after  we 
left  our  ground. 

I  have  a  list  of  our  army,  which  I  would  willingly  send  you, 


SURRENDER  OF   YPRES  45 

but  Major  Rainsford  gave  it  me,  and  desired  I  would  be  cautious 
of  showing  it,  and  advised  me  not  to  venture  sending  it  over. 
We  are  in  hopes  of  the  six  English  regiments  coming  to  join  us 
with  6000  Dutch.  The  wind  has  been  fair  for  bringing  them  to 
Ostend  ;  but  we  don't  hear  they  are  landed. 

Duke  de  Chartres  was  killed  at  the  siege  of  Ypres.  He  was 
one  of  their  chiefs,  and  a  very  experienced  officer.  The  French 
had  a  hundred  pieces  of  cannon  and  five  or  six  batteries  of  small 
mortars.  The  taking  of  the  town  is  really  no  great  feat,  if  we 
consider  the  strength  of  the  garrison,  which  was  said  to  be  but 
four  weak  battalions. 

I  wrote  to  my  dear  mother  by  Sergeant  Somerset,  who  I  sup- 
pose will  be  with  you  before  you  receive  this.  I  don't  doubt  but 
she  is  in  some  apprehension,  of  our  being  in  danger  ;  but  I  hope 
she'll  not  fright  herself  while  we  continue  in  health,  as  we  are 
both  now.  We  have  had  no  fatigue  yet  in  comparison  of  that 
we  had  in  Germany ;  but  nobody  knows  what  we  may  have. 
We  have  here  a  defensive  army,  and  fewer  in  numbers  than  we 
were  last  campaign ;  still  we  never  despair  of  coming  off  with 
laurels  whenever  we  meet  our  enemy.  Our  men  keep  up  their 
spirits.  The  taking  of  these  two  towns  and  the  number  of  men 
they  imagine  the  French  have  does  not  in  the  least  deject  them, 
but  makes  them  only  wish  for  a  meeting.  My  brother  desires 
his  duty  to  you  and  my  dearest  mother. 
I  am,  dearest  Sir, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  son, 

Edw.  Wolfe. 

I  return  you  many  thanks  for  my  lieutenancy. 

This  postscript  reminds  us  that  the  Wolfes  were  actively  engaged 
in  pushing  the  fortunes  of  both  their  sons  in  that  age  of  patronage 
and  promotion  by  purchase. 

A  month  after  the  foregoing  letter  was  written  Wade  held  a 
council  of  war,  but  although  the  French  raids  became  daily  more 
daring  (on  one  occasion  they  nearly  carried  off  the  aged  marshal 
himself)  little  came  of  it.  Inaction  ate  the  heart  out  of  the 
troops.  Some  of  the  generals  almost  went  down  on  their  knees 
urging  Wade  to  attack,  especially  when  the  enemy  was  obliged  to 
withdraw  half  his  strength  to  meet  the  Austrian  forces.  Nothing 
was  done ;  rivalries  and  petty  jealousies  abounded.  Discipline 
was  relaxed.     The  two  Wolfe   brothers  being  now   in  different 


46    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

regiments,  only  saw  each  other  occasionally.  Already  Edward"*s 
constitution  was  undermined  by  hardships.  In  September  he  was 
ailing  and  with  the  advent  of  the  first  chilly  winds  he  became 
seriously  ill.  Then  he  went  to  pieces,  and  a  galloping  consump- 
tion soon  claimed  "  the  Old  Soldier,""  whose  sweetness  of  disposition 
and  military  enthusiasm  had  endeared  him  to  all.  In  a  few 
weeks  the  brave  boy  was  dead.  He  was  not  yet  seventeen.  On 
this  melancholy  occurrence,  James,  whom  circumstances  had  pre- 
vented from  witnessing  it,  wrote  off  at  once  briefly  to  his  parents. 
The  poor  mother  was  overwhelmed,  and  desperately  anxious  to 
snatch  her  surviving  son  from  a  like  fate.  She  desired  him  to  come 
home  on  furlough  as  soon  as  leave  could  be  granted.  In  the  fol- 
lowing letter,  awkward  enough  yet  characteristic  of  the  writer  at 
that  time,  James  supplies  some  particulars  of  Edward's  demise. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Ghent,  29^A  October,  1744,  O.S. 

I  received  your  letter  this  morning  with  a  great  deal  of 
pleasure,  and  have  with  this  wrote  to  my  father  about  coming 
to  England.  I  hope  he  will  be  able  to  get  the  better  of  some 
obstacles,  and  I  shall  be  sincerely  happy. 

Poor  Ned  wanted  nothing  but  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  his 
dearest  friends  to  leave  the  world  with  the  greatest  tranquility. 
He  often  called  on  us.  It  gives  me  many  uneasy  hours  when  I 
reflect  on  the  possibility  there  was  of  my  being  with  him  some 
time  before  he  died.  God  knows  it  was  being  to  exact,  and  not 
apprehending  the  danger  the  poor  fellow  was  in ;  and  even  that 
would  not  have  hindered  it  had  I  received  the  physician's  first 
letter.  I  know  you  won't  be  able  to  read  this  paragraph  without 
shedding  tears,  as  I  do  writing  it ;  but  there  is  a  satisfaction 
even  in  giving  way  to  grief  now  and  then.  'Tis  what  we  owe 
the  memory  of  a  dear  friend. 

Though  it  is  the  custom  of  the  army  to  sell  the  deceased's 
efi'ects,  I  could  not  suffer  it.  We  none  of  us  want,  and  I  thought 
the  best  way  would  be  to  bestow  them  on  the  deserving  whom 
he  had  an  esteem  for  in  his  lifetime.  To  his  servant — the  most 
honest  and  faithful  man  I  ever  knew — I  gave  all  his  clothes.  .  .  . 
I  gave  his  horse  to  his  friend  Parry,^  with  the  furniture.  I  know 
he  loved  Parry,  and  I  know  for  that  reason  the  horse  will  be 
taken  care  of.     His  other  horse  I  keep  myself.     I  have  his  watch, 

^  Brotlier  of  Rev.  Joshua  Parry,  who  afterwards  wrote  an  ode  to  General 
Wolfe. 


EDWARD   WOLFE'S   DEATH  47 

sash,  gorget,  books,  and  maps,  which  I  shall  preserve  to  his 
memory.  Everything  else  that  I  have  not  mentioned  shall  be 
taken  care  of,  and  given  to  proper  persons. 

He  was  an  honest  and  a  good  lad,  had  lived  very  well,  and 
always  discharged  his  duty  with  the  cheerfulness  becoming  a 
good  officer.  He  lived  and  died  as  a  son  of  you  two  should, 
which,  I  think,  is  saying  all  I  can.  I  have  the  melancholy 
satisfaction  to  find  him  regretted  by  his  friends  and  acquaintances. 
His  Colonel  is  particularly  concerned  for  him,  and  desired  I 
would  assure  of  it.  There  was  in  him  the  prospect  (when 
ripened  with  experience)  of  good  understanding  and  judgment, 
and  an  excellent  soldier.  Youll  excuse  my  dwelling  so  long  on 
this  cruel  subject,  but  in  relating  this  to  you,  vanity  and  partiality 
are  banished.  A  strong  desire  to  do  justice  to  his  memory 
occasions  it. 

There  was  no  part  of  his  life  that  makes  him  dearer  to  me 
than  that  where  you  have  often  mentioned — he  pined  after  me. 
It  often  makes  me  angry  that  any  hour  of  my  life  should  pass 
without  thinking  of  him ;  and  when  I  do  think  of  him,  that 
though  all  the  reasons  I  have  to  lament  his  loss  are  now  as 
forcible  as  at  the  moment  of  his  departure,  I  don't  find  my  heart 
swell  with  the  same  sorrow  as  it  did  at  that  time.  Nature  is 
ever  too  good  in  blotting  out  the  violence  of  affliction.  For  all 
tempers  (as  mine  is)  too  much  given  to  mirth,  it  is  often  necessary 
to  revive  grief  in  one's  memory.  I  must  once  more  beg  you  will 
excuse  my  tiresome  length  and  manner  of  writing,  but  I  know 
your  indulgence.  Fm  just  now  going  to  write  to  my  Uncle 
Wolfe.i 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

By  the  middle  of  September  the  Austrian  and  Dutch  com- 
manders had  proposed  to  Wade  to  evacuate  that  part  of  Flanders 
and  establish  themselves  in  Ghent,  where  forage  was  to  be  had 
easily.  Upon  Wade's  declining  the  proposition  the  Allies  left  him, 
and  he  was  quickly  under  the  humiliating  necessity  of  being  obliged 
to  follow.  So  Wolfe  was  at  Ghent  once  more.  The  prospect  of 
spending  the  winter  there  was  so  little  cheering  that  it  is  small 
wonder  he  looked  forward  eagerly  to  the  chances  of  furlough.  But 
furlough  was  not  to  be.  This  time  his  father's  influence  was  not 
sufficient,  or  he  was  considered  too  valuable  an  officer  to  be  dis- 
1  Major  Walter  Wolfe^  then  at  Dublin. 


48    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

pensed  with.  Nor  is  it  wholly  improbable  that  his  own  ambition 
had  again  something  to  do  with  his  remaining  with  his  regiment 
all  that  winter  at  Ghent. 

Ghent  well  deserved  to  be  for  ever  associated  with  James  Wolfe, 
for  here  no  inconsiderable  part  of  his  military  education  was  formed. 
It  was  in  the  old  Flemish  town  that  he  had,  as  an  ensign,  studied 
the  duties  of  an  adjutant ;  it  was  now,  as  a  captain,  he  prepared 
himself  for  the  onerous  post  of  brigade-major.  We  can  believe 
that  other  young  captains  and  lieutenants  easily  obtained  their 
furloughs. 

While  Wolfe  sedulously  strove  to  perfect  himself  at  Ghent  that 
winter  of  1744-45,  a  new  administration  had  come  into  power  in 
England.  Carteret  had  been  expelled,  and  Wade  the  inglorious 
was  recalled.  Amongst  the  new  men  of  the  Opposition  from 
whom  much  was  already  expected  was  William  Pitt.  This  rising 
statesman,  then  entering  his  thirty-seventh  year,  whose  eloquence 
and  high  patriotic  professions  marked  him  out  for  office,  had  had 
the  ill-fortune  to  provoke  the  personal  dislike  of  George  II.  But 
there  were  compensations.  The  aged  and  eccentric  Duchess  of 
Marlborough,  had  just  died,  leaving  him  in  her  will  the  hand- 
some sum  of  .£10,000  in  consideration  of  "  the  noble  defence  he 
has  made  for  the  support  of  the  laws  of  England  and  to  prevent 
the  ruin  of  his  country." 

Pitt  and  the  Opposition  leaders  had  gained  a  great  deal  of 
credit  by  their  fierce  antagonism  to  the  Hanoverian  policy  pursued 
by  Granville.  This  antagonism,  joined  to  his  resolution  to  accept 
no  place  save  that  of  Secretary  of  War,  kept  Pitt  out  of  office. 
But  it  was  soon  seen  that  the  Pelhams  had  no  real  intention  of 
subverting  the  Hanoverian  policy  which  the  King  had  so  much  at 
heart.  A  new  subsidy  to  Saxony  of  d£^l  50,000  was  even  decreed, 
and  in  January  1745,  a  Quadruple  Alliance  was  concluded  between 
Great  Britain,  Holland,  Austria  and  Saxony.  Nor  was  this  all ; 
besides  other  and  minor  subsidies  half-a-million  sterling  was  voted 
to  the  Queen  of  Hungary.  This  advance  of  <£200,000  on  her 
previous  subsidy  was  designed  to  enable  her  to  pay  the  Hanoverian 
and  Hessian  mercenaries,  who  hitherto  had  been  paid  direct  out  of 
the  British  Exchequer!  Thus  the  popular  clamour  was  quieted 
for  a  twelvemonth,  when,  stirring  events  having  intervened  at  home, 
18,000  Hanoverians  were  again  taken  into  British  pay.  This  time 
Pitt  the  patriot,  but  also  Pitt  the  politician,  did  not  antagonize 
the  measure  so  adroitly  concerted  between  his  friends  and  their 
sovereign. 


MAJOR-GENERAL   JAMES   WOLFE 


A  posthumous  ■portrait  by  Gainsborough,  from  sketches  made  at  Bath,  1758.     In  the  possession  of  the 
Corporation  oj  Mancliester 


IV 

AIDE-DE-CAMP  AT   CULLODEN 

In  April  1745,  Captain  Wolfe  was  still  at  Ghent  and  fighting 
in  Flanders  was  resumed.  On  the  10th  of  that  month  the  new 
commander  of  the  British  and  Allied  forces  an'ived  in  Brussels. 
William,  Duke  of  Cumberland,  was  then  only  just  entering  the 
twenty-fourth  year  of  his  age.  The  mere  circumstance  of  its 
being  possible  for  a  youth  of  his  years,  even  with  all  the  prestige 
which  attaches  to  a  prince  of  the  blood,  to  be  entrusted  with 
the  supreme  command  of  50,000  troops  forcibly  illustrates  the 
character  of  contemporary  warfare  and  constitutional  ideas.  True, 
there  was  a  check  on  Cumberland's  motions  in  the  person  of  the 
Austrian  general.  Marshal  Konigsegg,  who  had  the  veto  power. 
On  the  other  hand  he  possessed,  as  has  already  been  hinted,  very 
considerable  military  qualifications.  He  was  of  an  imperious  dis- 
position, full  of  courage,  and  inspired  confidence.  Nor  was  he 
ignorant  of  the  technical  part  of  war. 

At  the  time  of  Cumberland's  arrival  the  French  marshal  Saxe 
was  busily  besieging  Tournay,  one  of  the  principal  fortresses  of 
Flanders.  To  attempt  to  raise  this  siege  the  commander  ordered 
forward  a  number  of  regiments  from  Brussels.  Unluckily,  Barreirs 
not  being  one  of  these,  Wolfe  had  to  stay  behind  to  garrison 
Ghent.  When  Saxe  learnt  of  the  British  advance  he  massed  four- 
fifths  of  his  army  at  the  village  of  Fontenoy,  and  gave  battle  to 
Cumberland  and  the  Allies  on  April  30.  A  few  days  Wolfe  sent 
home  the  following  account  of  what  happened — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Ghent,  Uh  May,  O.S.,  1745. 

Dear  Sir, — Fm  concerned  I  must  send  you  so  melancholy  an 
account  of  a  great  but  unsuccessful  attempt  to  raise  the  siege  of 
Tournay.  I  shall  just  tell  what  a  letter  before  me  from  Captain 
Field,  who  commanded  Colonel  Duroure's  Regiment,  says  of  it : — 

"  We  attacked  a  numerous  army,  entrenched  with  a  multi- 
plicity of  batteries,  well  placed  both  in  front  and  flank.  The 
action  began  the  30th  April,  O.S.,  about  five  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  and  lasted  till  two  in  the  afternoon.     There  has  been 

E  49 


50    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

a  great  deal  of  slaughter,  particularly  amongst  the  infantry, 
officers  more  in  proportion  than  soldiers.  The  enemy'^s  army 
were  supposed  to  be  70,000,  and  ours  about  50,000.  The 
soldiery  behaved  with  the  utmost  bravery  and  courage  during 
the  whole  affair,  but  rather  rash  and  impetus.  Notwithstanding 
the  bravest  attempts  were  made  to  conquer,  it  was  not  possible 
for  us  to  surmount  the  difficulties  we  met  with." 

Thus  the  gentleman  speaks  of  the  affair.  The  army  made 
a  fine  retreat,  in  such  order  that  the  French  did  not  think  proper 
to  pursue  them.  The  Duke,  I  hear,  has  shown  in  this  action 
most  unparalleled  bravery,  but  was  very  sensibly  touched  when 
he  found  himself  obliged  to  give  over  the  attack.  The  Hanover- 
ians have  shown  themselves  good  troops,  and  the  Blues  have 
regained  their  reputation,  having  been  several  times  broken  by 
two  battalions,  as  often  rallied,  and  returned  with  fresh  vigour 
to  the  charge.  The  French  go  on  with  the  siege  of  Tournay, 
and  will  have  it  very  soon.  We  expect  every  hour  to  be  ordered 
into  the  field,  and  replaced  by  a  weak  battalion.  Our  army  is 
encamped  at  Ath,  and  I'm  afraid  will  make  but  an  indifferent 
defensive  figure  the  rest  of  the  campaign.  I  shall  write  to-day 
to  Major  Rainsford  for  an  exact  return  of  the  loss  our  troops 
sustained.  In  the  meantime,  I  will  give  you  an  account  of  some 
unfortunate  men  that  have  fallen,  and  some  others  that  are 
wounded,  down  to  the  majors,  though  we  are  not  yet  exactly 
sure.  I  will  be  particular  in  your  regiment  (of  which  I  wish 
you  much  joy),  because  I  imagine  you  will  be  glad  to  know  how 
it  goes  with  them,  as  I  had  it  this  morning  from  the  Paymaster. 
No  officers  killed,  but  several  wounded,  and  them  you'll  find 
hereafter  to  be  very  good  ones : — Colonel  Keightley ;  Major 
Grey;  Captains  Dallow,  Loftus,  Hill,  Elkins.  Subs,  Rickson, 
etc.  ...  I  don't  hear  that  any  of  their  wounds  are  mortal. 

The  old  regiment  [Duroure's]  has  suffered  very  much;  18 
officers  and  300  men,  killed  and  wounded ;  amongst  the  latter  is 
Major  Rainsford. 

I  believe  this  account  will  shock  you  not  a  little;  but  'tis 
surprising  the  number  of  officers  of  lower  rank  that  are  gone. 
Pray  my  duty  to  my  mother. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

As  it  has  turned  out  we  may  thank  providence  we  were  not  there. 


THE   PRETENDER  LANDS  51 

So  heavily  had  Diiroure's  suffered  in  this  disastrous  engagement 
(in  which  the  total  British  loss  was  4074  killed  and  wounded,  620 
horses  and  21  guns)  that  Edward  Wolfe  by  his  death  in  hospital 
at  Berlingham  narrowly  missed  in  all  probability  a  death  on  the 
field  of  Fontenoy.  Owing  to  the  bravery  with  which  the  troops 
fought,  Fontenoy  has  been  called  a  "  glorious  defeat.""  After  the 
battle  the  Allies  entrenched  themselves  at  Lessines,  and  there  the 
Duke  of  Cumberland  sent  for  reinforcements  from  Ghent  and 
elsewhere.  Amongst  the  regiments  dispatched  was  BarrelPs,  and 
thus  Wolfe  found  himself  on  May  21  at  Lessines.  On  the  same 
day  Tournay  surrendered  to  Saxe.  Ghent  was  threatened,  and 
four  British  battalions  were  ordered  thither  to  defend  it.  Wolfe 
had  a  cordial  welcome  from  the  Duke,  who,  not  always  constant 
in  his  friendships,  ever  afterwards  seems  to  have  manifested  a 
cordiality  towards  the  young  officer.  On  June  12  he  signed  Captain 
Wolfe's  commission  as  brigade-major.^ 

By  his  departure  Wolfe  had  just  escaped  sharing  the  fate  of 
Ghent,  which  was  surprised  on  the  last  day  of  June.  As  the 
garrison  slept,  4000  of  the  enemy  got  over  the  ditch  with  fascines 
and  let  down  the  drawbridge.  The  resistance  offered  was  feeble : 
one  may  be  sure  our  hero  would  never  have  consented  to  the 
disgraceful  display  of  a  white  flag  at  the  citadel  before  any  effort 
had  been  made.  Moltke,  the  Commander  of  the  Allies  in  that 
quarter,  was  so  frightened  that  he  fled  pell-mell  to  Sluys,  twenty- 
one  miles  away,  where  the  governor  very  properly  refused  to  admit 
him.     After  this  the  fall  of  Ostend  was  a  foregone  conclusion. 

Such  was  the  posture  of  affairs  with  the  British  Army  on  the 
Continent  in  the  summer  of  1745.  Not  without  reason  to  Prince 
Charles  Edward  and  his  adherents  did  it  seem  to  offer  a  heaven- 
sent opportunity  for  raising  the  standard  of  the  banished  Stewarts, 
for  making  a  fresh  attempt  upon  the  crown  of  the  United 
Kingdom.  None  could  say  the  time  was  not  auspicious.  King 
George  was  in  Hanover,  the  bulk  of  the  standing  army  was  in 
Flanders ;  British  generalship  was  in  nubibus. 

Wherefore  on  July  25, 1745,  the  Young  Pretender,  who  seemed 
destined  by  Fortune  to  win  hearts  by  the  beauty  of  his  person 
and  the  grace  of  his  manner,  landed  in  Scotland.  It  was  three 
weeks  before  the  news  of  this  audacious  attempt  reached  Sir  John 
Cope,  who  commanded  the  forces  in  the  north.  Cope  set  out  from 
Edinburgh  with  1500  men  for  Fort  Augustus,  thinking  to  nip 

1  "Captain  Wolfe  is  appointed  Brigade-major  to  Pulteney's  Brigade."— 
Duke  of  Cumberland's  Note-book,  Towusliend,  p.  83. 

E  2 


52     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

the  rebellion  easily  in  the  bud.  He  was  provided  with  a  Royal 
Proclamation  offering  a  reward  of  c£30,000  to  any  person  who 
should  seize  and  secure  the  pretended  Prince  of  Wales,  and  he 
carried  a  thousand  stand  of  arms  to  distribute  to  native  volunteers. 
He  might  have  spared  himself  the  trouble.  On  arriving  at  Dal- 
whinnie  he  found  an  important  pass  in  possession  of  the  rebels, 
and  to  avoid  a  battle  changed  his  course  and  marched  straight  on 
to  Inverness.  It  is  unfair,  perhaps,  to  accuse  Cope  of  cowardice ; 
he  calculated  the  chances  of  success  against  the  forces  he  found 
were  too  slender,  and  decided  to  beat  a  retreat.  It  may  have  been 
a  foolish  calculation,  but  such  as  it  was  his  officers  agreed  with  it. 
The  retreat  certainly  gave  colour  to  the  report  which  flew  about 
the  Highlands  that  the  soldiers  of  the  Elector  (as  the  rebels  called 
George  II)  had  fled  before  the  gallant  adherents  of  Prince  Charles. 
The  latter  descended  upon  the  Lowlands,  entered  Perth,  was  in 
Stirling  on  14th  September,  and  on  the  17th  reached  Edinburgh. 
Here  he  took  up  quarters  in  his  ancestral  palace  of  Holyrood. 

No  wonder  the  Government  was  thoroughly  alarmed.  Their 
alarm  was  still  greater  when  they  learnt  that  the  Pretender,  so  far 
from  being  content  with  his  exploits  already  achieved,  had  left  the 
capital,  off*ered  battle  to  Sir  John  Cope  and  utterly  routed  that 
officer  at  Preston  Pans. 

Reinforcements  must  come  home  in  haste  from  the  Netherlands, 
and  Wolfe  was  not  left  long  in  doubt  that  BarrelFs  was  amongst 
the  seven  battalions  ordered  to  cross  the  Channel  to  Scotland. 

Late  in  September  the  passage  was  made  and  a  march  begun 
northward  to  Newcastle.  There  old  Marshal  Wade  had  collected 
10,000  troops  to  face  the  Pretender,  daily  growing  bolder.  Wolfe 
was  busy  enough  at  Newcastle,  where  besides  his  proper  duties  as 
major  he  would  seem  to  have  performed  those  of  Deputy  Quarter- 
master General,  if  we  may  judge  by  an  order  still  extant  signed  by 
Marshal  Wade  directing  "  Major  James  Wolfe  to  be  paid  <^930  for 
allowance  for  93  baggage  horses  to  the  seven  battalions  lately 
come  from  Flanders."  The  pleasure  must  have  been  great  of 
meeting  his  father,  who,  now  at  the  age  of  sixty  and  rather  gouty, 
was  seeing  active  service  as  general  of  division.  It  must  have 
furnished  an  entertaining  picture  to  see  the  old  general  leaving 
Newcastle  with  General  Bland  with  a  detachment  ordered  up  the 
East  Coast,  unable  to  sit  his  horse,  hurrying  along  in  his  post-chaise, 
hearing  at  every  stopping  place  all  the  idle  rumours  about  Prince 
Charles's  movements,  his  victories,  sieges  and  flights,  and  the 
probability  of  the  "  confounded  Highlanders  "  making  a  prolonged 


MARCH   FROM   NEWCASTLE         53 

resistance.  That  post-chaise,  had  a  younger  man  been  inside, 
would  have  served  as  a  fitting  symbol  of  the  old  school.  But  the 
rugged  veteran  within  clung  to  service  to  the  last. 

Already  it  was  known  that  14,000  muskets  and  at  least  80,000 
had  come  to  the  rebels  from  France.  In  November  the  Pretender 
invaded  England  and  laid  siege  to  Carhsle.  About  this  time  we 
get  the  following  letter  from  Wolfe  to  his  mother. 

Newcastle^  November  lUh,  1745. 

I  received  yours  the  day  the  last  post  went  out,  but  as  my 
father  was  then  writing  to  you  I  thought  it  needless.  I  was 
under  some  apprehension  for  him  on  the  road  to  Berwick,  and 
was  even  told  he  was  made  prisoner,  but  not  with  foundation  to 
give  much  credit  to,  as  it  had  fallen  out.  I  really  believe  you 
need  not  concern  yourself  about  my  father's  safety,  for  "'tis  the 
opinion  of  most  men  that  these  rebels  won't  stand  the  King's 
troops ;  and  as  to  marching  north  and  south  with  the  army  in 
his  post-chaise,  it  does  him  so  much  service  that  I  never  saw  him 
look  better. 

It  is  said  the  Pretender's  people  made  an  attack  on  Carlisle, 
but  have  been  repulsed  with  loss ;  this,  however  is  not  to  be 
depended  upon. 

You  cannot  doubt  the  sincerity  of  my  intentions,  but  to 
convince  you  I  must  beg  you  will  no  more  think  of  what  you 
have  mentioned  in  your  letter.  I  wrote  to  you  in  a  style  of 
complaint,  just  £Ls  the  accident  happened,  but  I  have  now  got 
the  better  of  that,  and  am  in  a  condition  to  repair  the  loss.  I 
know  very  well  the  many  good  uses  you  have  of  putting  your 
money  to ;  pray  don't  let  me  be  the  instrument  of  preventing  it. 
Besides,  you  give  it  to  a  person  that  ought  to  give  you,  by  the 
difference  of  income.  I  desire  you  won't  imagine  I  am  so  un- 
reasonable a  dog  as  to  think  of  it. 

There  is  one  thing  that  I  must  beg  leave  to  assure  you,  that 
though  I  don't  take  it  I  am  not  the  less  obliged  to  you,  and 
shall  always  own  a  proper  acknowledgment  for  this  and  the 
innumerable  kindnesses  I  have  always  received  from  you.  I 
heartily  wish  you  your  health,  and  am. 

Your  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Two  days  after  this  letter  was  written  Wade,  greatly  hesitating, 
set  his  troops  in  movement  towards  Carlisle.     The  weather  was 


54    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

V —  . 

unusually  severe  and  the  roads  well-nigh  impassable  through  snow. 
It  took  fifteen  hours  for  the  men  to  cover  ten  miles.  Another 
day's  such  march  and  tidings  came  to  Wade  that  Carlisle  had 
surrendered.  This  was  enough  for  him :  he  turned  round  in  his 
tracks  back  to  Newcastle,  leaving  the  insurgents  to  do  as  they 
please.  How  sick  the  Brigade-major  of  nineteen  must  have  been 
of  Marshal  Wade's  method  of  making  war ! — a  capital  illustration 
of  how  not  to  do  it.  The  Government  was  getting  to  be,  though 
slowly,  of  the  same  opinion. 

Meanwhile  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  had  arrived  in  England 
with  the  rest  of  the  British  army  and  was  quickly  encamped  with 
8000  men  at  Lichfield.  Another  army  began  to  be  formed  at 
Finchley  (the  "  March  to  Finchley  "  of  Hogarth  is  recalled),  which 
the  King  declared  he  was  ready  to  command  in  person.  All  these 
forces  were  likely  to  be  needed,  for  Prince  Charles,  finding  that 
Wade  did  not  intend  to  attack  him,  came  boldly  onwards  to  Preston 
in  Lancashire,  where  he  was  received  with  three  hearty  cheers,  "  the 
first  he  had  heard  in  England.*"  At  Manchester  there  was  a  ringing 
of  bells  and  more  cheering,  and  there  several  hundred  volunteers 
were  enrolled.  In  the  midst  of  this  encouraging  progress  came 
news  that  Wade  had  at  last  made  up  his  mind  to  do  something. 
He  was  advancing  against  the  invaders  through  Yorkshire. 

This  brought  Charles  Edward  to  a  halt.  With  Cumberland 
on  one  side  and  Wade  on  the  other  the  situation  needed  consider- 
ing. At  first  the  Prince  rejected  proposals  for  a  return  to 
Scotland.  But  he  yielded  to  the  counsel  of  his  officers  at  Derby 
and  sullenly  consented  to  a  retreat  on  the  6th  December.  It 
was  a  momentous  decision.  It  is  more  than  one  historian's 
belief  that  had  Charles  marched  onward  from  Derby  he  would 
have  gained  the  British  throne.  Henry  Fielding,  writing  in  the 
True  Patriot^  declared  that  "when  the  Highlanders,  by  a  most 
incredible  march,  got  between  the  Duke's  army  and  the  metropolis, 
they  struck  a  terror  into  it  scarce  to  be  credited."  King  George 
himself  prepared  for  flight  and  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  was 
paralyzed.  So  great  was  the  run  on  the  Bank  of  England  that, 
but  for  the  stratagem  of  paying  out  in  sixpences,  it  would  have 
been  brought  to  bankruptcy. 

On  the  heels  of  the  retreating  Pretender  Cumberland  with  his 
cavalry  set  off"  straightway  in  pursuit.  At  Macclesfield  he  found 
the  enemy  two  days  in  advance.  Joined  by  a  body  of  horse  sent 
across  country  by  Wade  the  Duke  pressed  close  at  their  heels, 
reaching  Carlisle  the  day  after  the  Highlanders  had  left. 


BATTLE   OF  FALKIRK  55 

Wolfe  had  already  received  orders  to  march  with  his  regiment 
on  to  Scotland  to  intercept  the  rebels  on  their  route  to  the  Scottish 
capital.  On  the  5th  of  January  1746,  Charles  summoned  Stirling 
to  surrender.  The  Castle  was  in  charge  of  an  able  soldier,  General 
Blakeney,  who,  undismayed  by  the  array  of  battering  guns  and 
French  engineers  at  the  disposal  of  the  insurgents,  bade  them 
defiance.  In  three  days  the  town  surrendered,  but  Blakeney  had 
hopes  of  immediate  succour  from  the  troops  of  Wade.  The  latter 
advanced  rapidly  from  Edinburgh,  Wolfe  amongst  them,  but  they 
were  no  longer  led  by  the  veteran  of  '15.  Wade  had  been  recalled 
and  his  successor  was  General  Henry  Hawley,  nominated  by  his 
royal  patron,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  who  after  the  reduction  of 
Carlisle,  marched  southward.  History  has  bestowed  upon  the  new 
commander  the  title  of  "  Hangman  Hawley,"  and  in  this  instance 
Clio,  whose  pronouncements  so  often  reverse  prejudice  and  occasion- 
ally, alas,  confirm  it,  cannot  be  charged  with  infelicity  or  injustice. 
To  mediocre  military  ability  Hawley  united  a  ferocious  temper 
and  a  genuine  love  of  cruelty.  He  indulged  himself  in  the  pleasure 
of  carrying  a  couple  of  gibbets  with  him  as  camp  furniture.  His 
men  hated  him.  Hawley  commanded  about  the  same  numerical 
strength  as  Charles  Edward,  namely,  about  nine  thousand  men. 

On  Hawley's  approach  Charles  Edward  assembled  his  troops 
near  Stirling  and  awaited  an  attack.  To  his  surprise,  Hawley 
halted  at  Falkirk,  firm  in  the  belief  that  the  "  Highland  rabble," 
as  he  contemptuously  termed  the  Pretender's  troops,  would  disperse 
in  a  panic  on  hearing  of  his  approach.  In  fact,  he  had  boasted  at 
White's  Club  not  many  weeks  before  that  with  two  regiments  of 
dragoons  he  would  drive  the  rebels  from  one  end  of  the  kingdom 
to  the  other.  So  little  did  he  anticipate  an  attack  that  he  rode 
off  some  miles  to  dine  with  the  Countess  of  Kilmarnock,  and  his 
own  troops  were  actually  feeding  when  some  rustics  flew  into  camp 
and  gave  the  alarm.  Two  officers  sprang  up  a  tree  and  distinctly 
saw  the  approaching  Highlanders  through  a  telescope.  General 
Huske,  left  in  command,  instantly  gave  orders  to  beat  to  arms, 
and  the  troops,  dropping  their  rations,  were  formed  in  line  for 
action.  But  owing  to  the  Prince's  stratagem  of  sending  round  a 
detachment  as  a  feint  in  his  rear,  Huske  became  confused,  not 
daring  to  act  without  Hawley's  sanction.  The  troops  began 
murmuring,  "  Where  is  the  General  ?  What  shall  be  done  ?  We 
have  no  orders."  Perchance  there  was  one  brigade  where  the  men's 
confidence  in  their  major  quieted  their  speculations.  Suddenly 
the  General,  hatless  and  perspiring,  came  galloping  up.     At  the 


56    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

same  time  a  winter  storm  broke  and  the  icy  rain  beat  full  in  the 
faces  of  the  troops.  Hawley,  pulling  himself  together  and  recog- 
nizing the  inconvenience  of  his  position,  desired  that  the  battle,  if 
battle  there  was,  should  be  fought  on  the  summit  of  Falkirk  moor. 
But  he  was  too  late — the  Pretender  was  before  him,  and  Hawley 
was  compelled  to  face  the  foe  in  a  very  inferior  position.  His 
artillery  stuck  fast  in  a  morass  and  could  not  be  extricated,  and  it 
was  the  greatest  luck  the  Pretender  had  not  brought  his  with  him. 
Hawley  then  ordered  Ligonier  to  charge.  The  cavalry  was 
received  by  the  Highlanders  with  great  composure,  and  men  and 
horses  reeled  from  the  impact.  Three  of  Hawley's  regiments 
had  no  better  success.  Drunk  with  their  achievement,  the  clansmen, 
dropping  their  muskets,  seized  their  swords  and  fell  on  before  and 
behind.  It  was  hardly  in  human  nature  for  even  seasoned  troops 
to  stand  firm  before  such  an  onslaught  of  both  Scotsmen  and  Scots 
weather.  In  vain  their  officers  strove  to  urge  them  forward :  their 
centre  broke  and  gradually  all  fell  back. 

The  three  English  regiments  on  the  right  did  their  utmost  to 
stand  firm,  but  at  length  they  too  were  compelled  to  yield.  It 
must  have  gone  greatly  against  Wolfe's  grain  when  the  orders 
came  for  retreat ;  but  at  least  he  had  the  satisfaction  of  bringing 
off  his  men  steadily  to  the  beat  of  drums  and  with  flying  colours — 
a  great  feat.  We  are  told  that  many  of  themselves  as  well  as 
some  of  the  enemy,  supposed  the  retreat  was  a  piece  of  military 
tactics  rather  than  an  affair  of  compulsion.  Otherwise,  it  is  prob- 
able an  attempt  at  pursuit  might  have  been  made,  and  under  the 
circumstances  the  King's  troops  must  have  been  completely  routed. 
Through  the  rain  and  darkness  they  marched  to  Linlithgow,  on  the 
way  to  Edinburgh,  leaving  Prince  Charles  and  his  Highlanders 
rubbing  their  eyes  and  undecided  whether  they  had  scored  a  victory 
or  a  defeat.  Finding  Hawley  had  left  his  cannon  behind  him,  they 
concluded  they  were  the  victors.  Wolfe  himself  writes  thus  to  his 
uncle  Sotheron — 

To  William  Sotheron. 

Edinburgh,  January  20th,  1746. 

Dear  Sir, — If  you  have  not  seen  the  Gazette,  you  will  have 
heard  of  our  late  encounter  (for  'twas  not  a  battle,  as  neither  side 
would  fight)  :  and  possibly  it  will  be  told  you  in  a  much  worse 
light  than  it  really  is.  Though  we  can't  have  been  said  to  have 
totally  routed  the  enemy,  we  yet  remained  a  long  time  masters 
of  the  field  of  battle,  and  of  our  cannon,  not   one  of  which 


CUMBERLAND  ARRIVES  57 

would  have  been  lost  if  the  drivers  had  not  left  their  carriages 
and  run  oiF  with  the  horses.  We  left  Falkirk  and  part  of  our 
camp  because  the  ammunition  of  the  army — on  which  we  can 
only  depend — was  all  wet  and  spoiled ;  but  our  retreat  was  in 
no  ways  molested  by  the  enemy,  as  affecting  our  superiority. 
The  loss  of  either  side  is  inconsiderable,  and  we  are  now  making 
all  necessary  preparations  to  try  once  more  to  put  an  end  to  this 
rebellion,  which  the  weather  has  hitherto  prevented,  and  in  my 
opinion  can  at  any  time  be  the  only  objection. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Notwithstanding  the  young  officer'^s  way  of  treating  it,  the 
battle  of  Falkirk  was  a  decidedly  unpleasant  episode,  and  the  loss 
in  killed,  wounded  and  prisoners  on  the  Royal  side  far  from  incon- 
siderable, as  Wolfe  discovered  when  the  muster  rolls  of  regulars 
and  volunteers  came  to  be  issued.  Instead  of  resting  themselves, 
the  Highlanders,  who  took  possession  of  Falkirk,  passed  the  entire 
night,  we  are  told,  stripping  the  dead  bodies  left  on  the  field,  so 
that  in  the  morning  a  spectator  likened  these  last  to  a  large  flock 
of  white  sheep  lying  upon  the  slopes  of  the  distant  hill.  Having 
loaded  themselves  with  plunder,  many  of  the  clansmen  retired,  as 
was  their  wont,  to  the  mountains,  thereby  weakening  the  forces  at 
the  disposal  of  the  Prince,  who  now  continued  his  fruitless  siege 
of  Stirling  castle. 

In  London  the  news  of  Falkirk  caused  great  uneasiness,  as 
well  as  surprise.  Cumberland  made  no  secret  of  his  opinion  that 
the  whole  business  was  due  to  lack  of  discipline.  "  Had  I 
been  there,"  he  said  to  a  friend,  "  I  would  have  attacked 
the  rebels  with  the  men  Hawley  had  left.""  This  dictum  was 
repeated  in  the  Royal  hearing;  whereupon  the  King  requested 
Cumberland  to  take  charge  of  the  situation  in  Scotland.  The 
Duke  agreeing,  he  set  out  with  alacrity,  arriving  on  January  30 
(a  day  fatal  erstwhile  to  the  Stewarts)  in  Edinburgh.  There  he  had 
conferences  with  Hawley,  and  inspected  the  troops,  who  received 
him  with  rapture.  Cumberland  certainly  appeared  to  know  his 
own  mind,  and  the  very  next  day  ordered  a  march  back  towards 
Falkirk  and  Stirling.  With  him  went,  as  Lieutenant- Generals, 
Hawley  and  the  Earl  of  Albermarle,  father  of  Wolfe's  future 
colonel.  Lord  Bury.  The  force  numbered  about  7,800  men,  all 
now  full  of  zeal,  and  anxious  to  erase  the  blots  their  reputations 
had  suffered  at  Preston  Pans  and  Falkirk. 


58    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Scarce  were  they  well  on  the  march  than  grievous  dissensions 
in  the  insurgent  army  caused  Charles  Edward  to  abandon  the 
siege  of  Stirling  and  retreat  across  the  Forth  in  haste,  leaving 
his  wounded  and  prisoners.  He  reached  Inverness,  where  he 
instantly  dispossessed  Lord  Loudoun,  reduced  the  citadel,  and  took 
and  destroyed  Fort  Augustus.  At  his  heels  soon  followed  Cum- 
berland, who,  having  first  left  Hessian  garrisons  at  Stirling  and 
Perth,  on  February  28  entered  Aberdeen.  Here  numbers  of  the 
nobility  and  gentry — prudent  in  their  generation — came  to  offer 
their  services  to  King  George,  and  the  next  few  weeks  saw  detach- 
ments sent  to  scour  the  surrounding  country,  offering  protection 
to  the  loyal,'and  compelling  flight  on  the  part  of  the  disaffected. 
Some  of  these  detachments  were  overtaken  by  the  rebels  and  cut 
to  pieces.  But  it  was  generally  easy  work.  Major  Lafausille,  for 
example  (he  was  afterwards  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  Wolfe's),  at  the 
head  of  three  hundred  men,  spread  havoc  about  the  district  of  Glen 
Esk,  long  remembered.  Two  Aberdeen  non-juring  churches  were 
burnt  by  the  soldiers,  but  generally  speaking  there  were  no  breaches 
of  discipline.  The  Duke  was  strictness  itself,  and  had  his  men  well 
in  hand.  They  had  little  leisure,  as  despite  the  severity  of  the 
weather,  Cumberland  insisted  upon  so  many  hours'  drill  daily. 

As  for  Wolfe,  he  was,  at  the  Commander-in-Chiefs  request, 
appointed  aide-de-camp  to  Hawley.  In  this  capacity  there  now 
occurred  an  interesting  episode  in  the  life  of  our  hero  which  demon- 
strates his  own  complete  subjection  to  discipline  and  his  strict  obedi- 
ence to  orders,  however  distasteful.  On  the  arrival  of  the  army  in 
Aberdeen  the  Duke  took  up  his  quarters  at  the  house  of  an  advo- 
cate, Alexander  Thomson,  who,  although  a  Whig  and  a  firm 
supporter  of  King  George,  received  no  compensation  for  being 
thus  deprived  of  his  house  and  furniture.  He  afterwards  com- 
plained bitterly  that  his  bed  and  bed-linen  had  been  abused  and 
spoiled,  and  that  he  had  been  robbed  of  a  stock  of  sugar  which 
he  locked  up.  Thomson's  next  neighbour  was  a  Mrs.  Gordon,  of 
well-known  Jacobite  proclivities.  The  house  of  this  lady  Hawley 
was  told  to  take  possession  of  for  his  own  quarters.  The  story  of 
what  happened  is  somewhat  difficult  to  unravel,  because  only  Mrs. 
Gordon's  own  account,  as  recited  in  various  Jacobite  memoirs, 
exists  ;  but  inferences  are  obvious.  Says  the  lady,  describing  the 
"  disgraceful  episode  "  with  great  circumstantiality — 

"  The  Duke  came  to  my  house,  attended  by  General  Hawley 
and  several  others.  The  General  lay  in  my  bed,  and  very  early  on 
Friday  morning  sent  a  messenger  to  the  house  where  I  was,  demand- 


■ 


MRS.    GORDON  59 

ing  all  my  keys.  .  .  .  That  evening,  one  Major  Wolfe,  came  to  me, 
and  after  asking  me  if  I  was  Mrs.  Gordon,  and  desiring  a  gentle- 
man who  was  with  me  to  go  out  of  the  room,  he  said  that  he  was 
come  to  tell  me,  that  by  the  Duke  of  Cumberland's  and  General 
Hawley's  orders,  I  was  deprived  of  everything  I  had,  except  the 
clothes  on  my  back.  After  delivering  this  message,  he  said  that 
General  Hawley,  having  enquired  into  my  character  of  several 
persons  who  had  all  spoke  very  well  of  me,  and  had  told  him  that 
I  had  no  hand  in  the  Rebellion,  and  that  I  was  a  stranger  there, 
without  any  relatives  in  that  country,  he,  the  General,  therefore, 
would  make  interest  with  the  Duke  that  I  might  have  any  particu- 
lar thing  that  I  had  a  mind  to,  and  could  say  was  my  own.  I 
then  desired  to  have  my  tea,  but  the  Major  told  me  it  was  very 
good,  and  that  tea  was  scarce  in  the  army  ;  so  he  did  not  believe 
I  could  have  it.  The  same  answer  was  made  when  I  asked  for  my 
chocolate.  I  mentioned  several  other  things,  particularly  my 
china.  That  he  told  me  was,  a  great  deal  of  it,  very  pretty,  and 
that  they  were  very  fond  of  china  themselves  ;  but  as  they  had  no 
ladies  travelled  with  them,  I  might  perhaps  have  some  of  it,  I 
then  desired  to  have  my  pictures.  He  said  he  supposed  I  could 
not  wish  to  have  them  all.  I  replied  that  I  did  not  pretend  to  name 
any  except  my  son's.  He  asked  me  if  I  had  a  son,  where  was  he  ? 
I  said  I  had  sent  him  into  the  country  to  make  room  for  them. 
To  what  place  ?  said  he.  I  answered,  to  Sir  Arthur  Forbes's.  He 
asked  how  old  my  son  was.  I  said  about  fourteen.  Said  he,  then 
he  is  not  a  child,  and  you  will  have  to  produce  him  ;  and  thus  we 
parted.  This  Major  Wolfe  was  aide-de-camp  to  General  Hawley. 
The  next  day,  after  petitioning  the  Duke,"  she  continues,  "  Major 
Wolfe  came  to  me  again  and  told  me,  that  the  Duke  had  sent  him 
to  let  me  know  that  my  petition  had  been  read  to  him,  and  that 
he  would  take  care  that  everything  should  be  restored  to  me. 
Notwithstanding  this,  when  I  sent  to  the  house  to  ask  for  any- 
thing, as,  in  particular,  I  did  for  a  pair  of  breeches  for  my  son,  a 
little  tea  for  myself,  for  a  bottle  of  ale,  for  some  flour  to  make 
bread,  because  there  was  none  to  be  bought  in  the  town,  all  was 
refused  me."  She  goes  on  to  say,  "  I  should  have  mentioned  above 
that  Major  Wolfe  did  one  day  bring  me  my  son's  picture,  but 
without  the  frame  ;  and  he  then  told  me  that  General  Hawley  did 
with  his  own  hands  take  it  out  of  the  frame,  which  was  a  gilt  one 
and  very  handsome.  The  frame  the  General  left  behind  him,  and 
I  afterwards  found  it  in  the  house."  ^ 

1  Bishop  P'orbe's  Jacobite  Memoirs j  edited  by  R.  Chambers,  1834. 


60    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Now,  in  perusing  the  foregoing,  one  has  only  to  bear  in  mind 
that  Mrs.  Gordon  was  a  Jacobite  lady  of  substance,  against  whom 
the  Duke  of  Cumberland  had  decreed  no  mercy,  that  she  drew  up 
an  inventory  of  the  goods  in  her  possession,  amongst  which  were 
large  supplies  of  salt  beef,  pickled  pork,  brandy,  rum,  tea,  chocolate, 
which  naturally  excited  the  suspicion  of  the  Duke.  This  suspicion 
was  confirmed  by  a  further  entry  of  "  One  set  of  blue  and  white, 
ten  dishes,  forty  plates  and  three  dozen  plates.  Note.  These  were 
not  my  own,  but  were  sent  to  my  house  to  see  if  I  would  buy  them."^ 
Under  the  circumstances  Cumberland,  Hawley  and  Wolfe  believed 
that  the  lady  was  artfully  endeavouring,  as  has  been  observed  by 
Wright,^  to  conceal  the  property  of  her  proscribed  friends.  It  was 
not  a  pleasant  task,  thus  to  be  obliged  closely  to  interrogate  a  lady, 
and  Wolfe  was  no  doubt  heartily  glad  to  be  quit  of  the  affair. 
Doubtless,  too,  his  concession  of  the  portrait  brought  down  on  him 
a  reprimand  from  "  Hangman  "  Hawley,  who  was  little  likely  to  be 
influenced  by  any  tender  feelings. 

On  March  12  BarrelFs  regiment  was  dispatched  to  Straths- 
bogie  to  make  a  demonstration  against  a  body  of  rebels 
there.  Wolfe  did  not  accompany  them,  but  was  kept  busy  for  the 
next  few  weeks  at  head- quarters.  On  April  6  Cumberland  was 
ready  to  march,  but  news  coming  that  a  French  sloop  bearing 
men,  money  and  arms  to  the  rebels  had  been  driven  ashore,  a 
detachment  was  instantly  sent  to  that  quarter.  A  number  of 
French  and  Spaniards  who  had  thus  been  forced  to  land  with  their 
belongings  were  captured,  and  some  ^^1 2,000  was  brought  into 
Aberdeen.  The  camp  broke  up  on  the  8th,  the  ships  sailing  along 
the  coast  in  full  view  of  the  troops.  The  Spey  was  duly  forded 
in  fine  weather.  The  water  came  up  to  the  men's  waists  and  the 
current  was  strong,  but  it  was  part  and  parcel  of  a  soldier''s  lot  to 
Wolfe,  who  felt  they  were  well  out  of  the  business  with  the  drown- 
ing of  only  a  single  one  of  his  dragoons.  All  along  the  march  the 
enemy  hung  about,  falling  back  at  Elgin  and  Forres.  On  the  15th, 
being  Cumberland's  birthday,  permission  was  given  for  a  halt  at 
Nairn.  Such  rejoicings  apparently  were  anticipated  by  the  rebels, 
who  planned  a  surprise  at  Nairn.  Unluckily  they  miscalculated 
the  time  required,  and  dawn  overtaking  them,  they  allowed  the 
Royal  troops  to  enjoy  in  peace  their  extra  royal  ration  of  brandy, 
biscuit  and  cheese  (paid  for  out  of  the  Duke's  pocket),  and  fell 
back  again  crestfallen  to  Culloden  Moor. 

A  battle  was  inevitable.  Charles  Edward  had  taken  up  his 
1  Life  of  Major-General  James  Wolfe ,  1864,  p.  81. 


CULLODEN  61; 

quarters  four  miles  east  of  Inverness,  at  the  residence  of  the  Lord 
President  Forbes,  known  as  Culloden  House.  His  troops  were 
spread  out  on  the  surrounding  moor,  five  thousand  in  number,  ill- 
fed,  weary  and  anxious.  At  dawn  on  the  16th  they  descried 
Cumberland's  force  advancing  against  them  on  its  march  to 
Inverness.  Charles  Edward  at  once  gave  orders  for  his  men  to 
be  drawn  up  in  two  lines  to  receive  the  enemy.  Ill-luck,  from  the 
first,  hung  over  his  banners.  He  had  neglected  to  place  the  clan 
Macdonald  on  the  right  of  his  army,  a  place  they  had  enjoyed, 
they  said,  in  all  Scotland's  struggles  since  Bannockburn.  As  a 
consequence  of  this  slight,  the  men  of  that  clan  were  sullen  to  the 
point  of  insubordination. 

On  his  side,  Cumberland  took  every  precaution.  To  diminish 
the  terrors  of  the  Highland  claymore  he  had  even  invented  a  new 
bayonet  exercise.  Each  soldier,  he  directed,  should  thrust  not  at 
the  man  immediately  opposite  him,  but  at  his  right-hand  neighbour. 
This  ingenious  drill,  whatever  its  real  value,  filled  the  troops  with 
still  greater  confidence  in  the  military  capacity  of  the  Duke.  Their 
officers  must  have  admired  the  masterly  way  in  which  he  formed 
his  force  into  three  lines,  having  cavalry  on  each  wing  and  two 
pieces  of  cannon  between  every  two  line  regiments.  He  then 
addressed  them  in  a  speech  to  this  effect :  "  If  there  is  any  man 
who,  from  disinclination  to  the  cause  or  from  having  relations  in 
the  rebel  army  would  now  prefer  to  retire  I  beg  him  in  God's 
name  to  do  so,  as  I  would  rather  face  the  Highlanders  with  1000 
determined  men  at  my  back  than  have  10,000  with  a  tithe  of 
them  lukewarm.*"  Small  wonder  his  speech  was  greeted  by  the 
men  with  huzzas  and  cries  of  "  Flanders  !  Flanders  ! "  When  it 
was  proposed,  it  being  one  o'clock  and  the  enemy  making  no 
movement,  that  the  troops  should  dine  before  the  battle,  "No, 
no,"  cried  Cumberland,  "  they  will  fight  all  the  better  on  empty 
bellies.  Remember  what  a  dessert  they  got  to  their  dinner  at 
Falkirk ! " 

Barrell's  regiment  was  in  the  first  line  when  the  mutual 
cannonade  announced  the  beginning  of  a  memorable  action.  The  | 
rebel  marksmanship  was  very  bad ;  but  the  English  discharge  of 
grape  went  home  with  terrible  effect,  causing  the  Highlanders  to 
fall  back  in  disorder.  When  they  advanced  again,  flinging  away 
their  muskets,  they  were  received  by  Barrell's  and  Monro's  at  the 
point  of  the  bayonet.  We  are  told  that  "  the  rebels  so  obstinately 
rushed  on  death  that  there  was  scarce  an  officer  or  soldier  in 
Barrell's  regiment  or  in  that  part  of  Monro's  which  was  engaged 


62     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

who  did  not  kill  one  or  two  men  each  with  their  bayonets  or 
spontoons.""  ^  But  for  an  account  of  the  battle  of  Culloden  we 
may  turn  to  a  letter  of  Wolfe's  to  a  friend  of  the  Wolfes  at 
York,  Major  Henry  Delabene,  who  had  promised  to  convey  the 
news  at  once  to  London. 

To  Henry  Delabene. 

Inverness,  April  Vjth,  1746. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  the  pleasure  to  tell  you  that  yesterday 
about  one  in  the  afternoon  we  engaged  the  Rebel  army,  and  in 
about  an  hour  drove  them  from  the  field  of  battle;  they  left 
near  1500  dead,  the  rest  (except  prisoners)  escaped   into   the 
neighbouring  mountains  ;    the  action  was  three  miles  short  of 
this  place  on  Lord  President  Forbes'  land,  and  from  thence  the 
name  of  the  battle  of  Culloden.     I  have  never  seen  an  action 
so  general,  nor  any  victory  so  complete.    The  Rebels  had  posted 
themselves,  so  they  imagined  we  could  neither  use  cannon  nor 
cavalry,  but  both  did  essential  service.     They  waited  till  we 
came  near  enough  to  fire  cannon  on  them,  and  were  greatly 
surprised  and  disordered  at  it,  and  finding  their  mistake,  they 
charged  upon  our  front  line  in  thick  solid  bodies,  throwing  down 
their  arms  without  exploding  them,  and  advancing  furiously 
with  their  drawn  swords.      You  must  understand  before   the 
cannonading  they  were  (I  mean  the  clans)  in  a  very  extended 
thick  line,  with  their  right  to  some  houses  and  a  wall  on  their 
left,  and  centre  were  supported  in  their  rear  by  the  Lowlanders 
and  some  few  horse.     Four  pieces  of  cannon  were  in  their  front, 
!  which  they  often  fired,  but  with  little  effect.     The  Duke's  army 
had  at  the  beginning  six  battalions  in  the  first  line,  commanded 
by  General  Albemarle,  and  Lord  Semple ;  as  many  in  the  second 
under  General  Husk,  and  three  regiments  formed  a  third  line  of 
reserve,  commanded  by  Brigadier  Mordaunt ;  Cobham's  Dragoons 
and  two  squadrons  of  Mark  Ker's  were  on  the  left  of  the  front 
line,  where  the  ground  was  firmest ;  the  other  squadron  and  one 
of  Kingston's  Horse  were  on  the  right,  and  two  pieces  of  can- 
Inon  in  equal  intervals  between  the  battalions  of  the  first  line. 
And  a  little  after  the  Rebels  begun  their  attack,  the  Duke 
observed  they  intended  to  extend  their  line  beyond  his  right  by 
breaking  to  the  left  from  their  centre,  and  instantly  ordered 
Pulteney's  from  the  reserve  and  form  on  the  right  of  his  first 
line,  and  brought  the  rest  of  that  Corps  towards  the  right  of  his 
^  Bigg's  Military  History. 


CUMBERLAND'S  VICTORY  63 

second  line  to  strengthen  that  wing ;  these  movements  obliged 
them  to  attack  his  front.  The  front  line  of  the  Rebel's  near 
approach  begun  a  most  violent  fire,  which  continued  8  or  9 
minutes,  and  kilPd  so  many  of  their  best  men  that  they  could 
only  penetrate  into  our  Battalion ;  that  on  the  left  of  the  line 
was  BarrelPs  regiment ;  they  were  attacked  by  the  Camerons  (the 
bravest  clan  amongst  them),  and  'twas  for  some  time  a  dispute 
between  the  swords  and  bayonets ;  but  the  latter  was  found  by 
far  the  most  destructable  weapon.  The  Regiment  behaved  with 
uncommon  resolution,  killing  some  say  almost  their  own  number, 
whereas  40  of  them  were  only  wounded,  and  those  not  mortally, 
and  not  above  ten  kilPd ;  they  were,  however,  surrounded  by 
superiority,  and  would  have  been  all  destroyed  had  not  Col. 
Martin  with  his  Regiment  (the  left  of  the  2nd  line  of  Foot) 
mov'd  forward  to  their  assistance,  prevented  mischief,  and  by  a 
well-timed  fire  destroyed  a  great  number  of  them  and  obliged 
them  to  run  off. 

General  Hawley,  who  commanded  the  five  squadrons  of 
Dragoons  on  the  left,  had,  by  the  assistance  of  150  Argyleshire, 
thrown  down  two  stone  walls,  and  was  (when  the  fire  of  the 
Foot  began)  posted  with  his  Dragoons  opposite  to  the  extremity 
of  the  enemy's  right  wing,  and  as  soon  as  the  Rebels  began  to 
give  way  and  the  fire  of  the  Foot  slacken'd,  he  ordered  Genl 
Bland  to  charge  the  rest  of  them  with  three  squadrons,  and 
Cobham  to  support  him  with  the  two.  It  was  done  with  won- 
derful spirit  and  completed  the  victory  with  great  slaughter. 
We  have  taken  22  pieces  of  brass  cannon  or  near  it,  a  number 
of  colours,  and  near  700  prisoners,  amongst  which  are  all  the 
Irish  picquets,  most  of  the  remainder  of  Fitz  James's  Horse, 
and  a  part  of  Drummond's  Regiment,  great  quantity  of  powder, 
muskets,  bayonets,  broadswords,  and  plads  innumerable.  All  the 
troops  acquitted  themselves  as  troops  worthy  the  command  of  a 
great  and  gallant  General,  and  no  individual  corps  has  been 
wanting  in  their  duty. 

The  Rebels,  besides  their  natural  inclinations,  had  orders  not 
to  give  quarter  to  our  men.  We  had  an  opportunity  of  aveng- 
ing ourselves  for  that  and  many  other  things,  and  indeed  we  did 
not  neglect  it,  as  few  Highlanders  were  made  prisoners  as  possible. 
Lord  Kilmarnock  is  one,  and  Brigr  Stapleton,  with  some  others 
you  have  a  list  of.  The  enemy,  by  their  own  order  of  battle, 
had  8300  men  in  the  field,  and  our  utmost  was  7200.  Our 
loss  is  inconsiderable.     Poor  Col.  Rich  had  his  left  hand  quite 


64^    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

cut  off,  and  a  very  bad  cut  in  his  right  elbow,  and  six  in  his 
head,  one  or  two  very  bad  ones.  Lord  Robert  Ker  was  kilPd 
fighting  against  numbers.  Rimon,  Edmunds,  Hillary,  Campbell 
and  Brown  are  wounded ;  the  last  of  them  obstinately  defending 
one  of  the  colours  that  was  knocked  to  the  ground,  but  not 
carried  off.  Twenty-one  old  soldiers  kilPd  and  wounded  by 
your  former  company.  The  Rebels  are  much  dispersed,  and  it  is 
supposed  will  never  be  able  to  collect  a  body  again.  The  Pre- 
tender was  in  their  rear,  but  soon  quitted  the  field.  You  must 
observe  it  blew  and  rain'd  very  hard  almost  all  the  time  we 
marched  from  our  camp  at  Nairn,  till  just  as  the  battle  began. 
It  then  became  fair,  and  continued  so  all  the  remainder  of  the 
day.  You  must  also  take  notice  that  the  Rebels  were,  the  night 
before  the  action,  within  four  miles  of  our  camp,  intending 
to  have  surpris'^d  and  attacked  us  in  the  dark ;  but  an  unforseen 
accident  and  a  good  deal  of  circumspection  prevented  them. 
This  and  other  lucky  circumstances  must  make  every  discerning 
man  observe  whence  "'tis  that  success  can  only  be  expected.  We 
wanted  to  have  fought  the  15th,  his  Royal  Highnesses  birthday, 
but  his  charity  for  the  men  after  many  marches  prevented  it. 

Yours, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  forgot  to  tell  you  that  the  whole  loss  of  the  King's 
troops  together  was  about  20  officers  and  300  men  kilPd  and 
wounded ;  so  you  may  see  what  a  share  your  old  Regiment  had 
in  it.  I  likewise  forgot  to  mention  the  cavalry  of  the  right, 
who  were,  I  should  have  said,  employed  in  pursuing  and  destroying 
the  broken  Rebels.^ 

"  Culloden,"  says  Mr.  Bradley,  "  changed  the  fate  of  Britain  in 

a  few  moments,  just  as  Quebec  changed  the  fate  of  the  British 

Empire."     Yet,   although   the   victory   was   decisive    enough,    a 

fj  different  result  might  have  been  looked  for  had  the  Prince  Charles 

;|  Edward  chosen  his  ground  elsewhere.     Nor  did  the  victors  by  any 

f;  means  acquit  themselves  without  blunders  which  against  another 

foe  might  have  cost  them  the  battle.     Indeed,  Wolfe  himself  hints 

darkly  at  all  this  in  a  letter  written  years  afterwards,  when,  on 

service  in  Scotland,  he  revisited  CuUoden  battlefield,  a  letter  which 

will  be  given  in  its  proper  sequence,     p  .  *5  <.  -  7 

^  The  original  of  this  letter  belonged  to  the  Rev.  C.  B.  Norcliffe,  of  Langton 
Hall,  Maltou. 


CULLODEN  DESCRIBED  65 

On  the  same  day  Wolfe  wrote  the  following  and  dispatched  it 
to  his  uncle  Sotheron. 

To  William  Sotheeon. 

Inverness^  April  17^  1746. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  the  pleasure  to  tell  you  that  yesterday, 
about  one  in  the  afternoon,  the  Duke  engaged  with  the  rebel 
army,  and  in  about  an  hour  drove  them  from  the  field  of  battle, 
where  they  left  nearly  1500  dead ;  the  rest,  except  prisoners, 
escaped  by  the  neighbourhood  of  the  hills.  The  action  was 
three  miles  short  of  this  place,  on  Lord  President  Forbes'  ^  land, 
from  whence  it  takes  its  name,  the  battle  of  Culloden. 

The  rebels  had  posted  themselves  on  a  high  boggy  moor, 
where  they  imagined  our  cannon  and  cavalry  would  be  useless ; 
but  both  did  useful  service.  The  cannon  in  particular  made 
them  very  uneasy,  and  after  firing  a  quarter  of  an  hour  obliged 
them  to  change  their  situation  and  move  forward  some  hundred 
yards  to  attack  our  front  line  of  Foot,  which  they  did  with  more 
fury  than  prudence,  throwing  down  their  firearms,  and  advancing 
with  their  drawn  swords.  They  were  however  repulsed  and 
ran  off  with  the  greatest  precipitation,  and  the  dragoons  falling 
in  amongst  them  completed  the  victory  with  much  slaughter. 
We  have  taken  about  twenty  pieces  of  cannon  in  the  field,  and 
near  it  a  number  of  colours,  and  I  believe  seven  hundred 
prisoners,  amongst  which  were  all  the  Irish  piquets,  most  of  the 
remainder  of  Fitz-James's  horse,  and  some  of  Drummond's 
regiment ;  great  quantity  of  powder,  ball,  muskets,  bayonets, 
broadswords,  etc;  plaids  innumerable. 

The  troops  behaved  themselves  as  they  ought  to  do,  and  no 
regiment  was  wanting  in  their  duty.  The  enemy  by  their  own 
order  of  battle  had  8300  men  in  the  field,  and  the  utmost  of 
our  number  was  7200,  of  which  we  had  about  twenty  officers 
and  three  hundred  men  killed  and  wounded.  Barrell's  regiment 
suffered  particularly,  having  out  of  three  hundred  and  fifty 
had  one  hundred  and  twenty  officers  and  men  killed  and 
wounded,  fighting  in  a  most  obstinate  manner  against 
the  Camerons,  the  best  clan  in  the  Highlands.  Orders  were 
publicly  given  in  the  rebel  army,  the  day  before  the  action,  that 
no  quarter  should  be  given  to  our  troops.  We  had  an 
opportunity  of  avenging  ourselves,  and  I  assure  you  as  few 
prisoners  were  taken  of  the  Highlanders  as  possible. 

1  Duncan  Forbes,  whose  son  was  in  the  Army  in  Flanders. 
F 


3    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

You  must  observe  that  it  blew  and  rained  very  hard  almost 
from  the  time  we  marched  from  our  camp  at  Nairn,  till  just  the 
battle  began,  when  it  became  fair  and  continued  so  the  remainder 
of  the  day.  Another  thing  you  must  take  notice  of,  that  the 
rebels  were  the  night  before  the  action  within  three  miles  of  our 
camp,  intending  to  surprise  and  attack  us  in  the  dark  ;  but  some 
unforseen  accident,  together  with  a  great  deal  of  superstition, 
turned  them  back.  These  circumstances  with  many  others  I 
could  name,  will  make  every  discerning  man  observe  from  whence 
only  our  success  can  proceed.  I  heartily  wish  you  joy  of  the 
happy  end  of  so  horrid  an  undertaking.  And  may  they  every 
be  punished  in  the  same  manner  who  attempt  the  like !  I  am, 
dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 


An  anecdote  is  narrated  (on  the  authority  of  Sir  Henry  Stuart 

AUanton)  that  riding  over  the  battlefield,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland 

observed  a  wounded  rebel  smiling  defiance  at  him.      Turning  to 

Major  Wolfe  at  his  side  he  said:  "  Wolfe,  shoot  me  that  Highland 

scoundrel  who  dares  look  on  us  with  such  contempt  and  insolence  ! "" 

Whereupon  the  young  aide-de-camp  replied :  "  My  commission  is  at 

your  Royal  Highnesses  disposal,  but  I  never  can  consent  to  become 

an  executioner."*'  ^ 

1^  f  1^  'S         \         The  bloodthirsty  injunction  is  much  more  in  keeping  with  the 

/  character  of  Hawley  than  of  Cumberland,  but  the  retort,  what- 

»t  fciJ»uc^C.  /    ever  its  verity,  by  no  means  clashes  with  our  notions  of  the  young 

officer'^s  independence. 

^  Anti-Jacobin  Review,  vol.  xiii.  p.  126. 


AFTER  LAFFELDT 

CuLLODEN  proved  effectually  the  death-blow  to  Jacobite 
aspirations.  On  the  one  hand  we  see  a  hunted  fugitive,  Charles 
Edward,  with  a  price  set  on  his  head ;  on  the  other  his  victorious 
cousin,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  taking  up  his  quarters  after  the 
battle  at  Culloden  House  whence  he  dispatched  his  aide-de-camp. 
Lord  Bury,  to  London  post-haste  with  news  of  the  triumph. ^ 

Slower  than  the  wings  of  rumour  (for  he  had  taken  nine  days). 
Bury  found  the  people  of  the  capital  already  in  an  ecstasy  of 
rejoicing.  The  Duke  was  hailed  as  the  deliverer  of  the  nation, 
and  Parliament  voted  him  .^'SSjOOO  a  year  for  life.  Cumberland 
himself  remained  with  the  army  in  the  neighbourhood  of  Fort 
Augustus  until  July  18,  engaged  in  those  severely  repressive 
measures  which  have  earned  him  the  eternal  opprobrium  of 
Jacobite  writers.  He  certainly  carried  fire  and  sword  ruthlessly 
through  the  disaffected  districts,  resolved  that  as  far  as  he  could  help 
there  should  be  no  repetition  of  the  affairs  '15,  '45.  But  it  was  not 
all  bloodthirstiness  in  the  camp  about  ruined  Fort  Augustus.  Horses 
and  ponies  were  taken  from  the  rebels,  and  so  plentiful  that  every 
private  could  own  his  steed,  besides  oxen,  sheep  and  goats.  The 
Duke  condescended  to  patronize  horse  races,  in  one  of  which 
"  Hangman "  Hawley  was  declared  "  a  winner  by  about  four 
inches." 

Brevet-Major  Wolfe  was  kept  very  busy  while  at  Inverness. 

At  Forfar  was  stationed  Cobham's  Dragoons  in  charge  of 
Captain  Charles  Hamilton,  with  whom  Wolfe  had  consider- 
able official  correspondence,  which  illustrates  the  unpleasant 
character  of  the  work  in  hand. 

*  "  My  friend  Lord  Bury  arrived  this  morning  from  the  Duke,  though  the 
news  was  got  here  before  him,  for  mth  all  our  victory  it  was  not  thought  safe 
to  send  him  through  the  heart  of  Scotland  ;  so  he  was  shipped  at  Inverness 
within  an  hour  after  the  Duke  entered  the  town.  Kept  beating  about  at  sea 
five  days  and  then  put  on  shore  at  North  Berwick  from  whence  he  came  post 
in  less  than  three  days  to  London,  but  with  a  fever  upon  him.  The  King  has 
immediately  ordered  him  £1000  and  I  hear  will  make  him  his  own  aide-de- 
camp."— Walpole  to  Mann,  April  25,  1746. 
P  2  67 


68    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  Captain  Hamilton. 

Inverness,  May  l^th,  1746. 

Sir, — I  am  ordered  by  General  Hawley  to  acquaint  you  that 
he  has  shown  your  letter  to  his  Royal  Highness,  who  approves 
of  everything  you  have  done,  and  desires  you  will  continue  that 
assiduity  in  apprehending  such  as  have  been  in  open  rebellion 
or  are  known  abettors,  and  that  you  will  be  carefuU  to  collect  all 
proffs  and  accusations  against  them,  and  deliver  them  to  Major 
Chaban,  and  let  the  Major  know  from  General  Hawley  that  he 
is  to  receive  and  keep  together  all  such  accusations  as  shall  be 
sent  him  from  you,  or  any  other  officer  under  his  command,  that 
they  may  be  more  conveniently  had  when  called  for.  You  know 
the  manner  of  treating  the  houses  and  possessions  of  rebels  in 
this  part  of  the  country.  The  same  freedom  is  to  be  used  where 
you  are  as  has  been  hitherto  practised,  that  is  seeking  for  them 
and  their  arms,  cattle,  and  other  things  that  are  usually  found. 
These  that  have  submitted  to  his  Royal  Highness'  Proclamation 
are  to  be  treated  as  you  have  mentioned.  The  list  is  to  be  kept 
and  their  arms  are  to  be  taken  from  them. 

I  am,  Sir,  your  most  obedient  Servant, 

J.  Wolfe,  Aide-de-Camp  to  General  Hawley. 

PS. — You  will  be  so  good  to  show  Major  Chaban  what 
concerns  him  in  this  letter,  and  also  what  relates  to  the  posses- 
sions of  the  rebels,  that  he  and  the  officers  under  his  command 
may  make  a  proper  use  of  it.^ 

To  Captain  Hamilton. 

Sir, — The  General  has  shown  your  letter  to  his  Royal 
Highness,  and  both  approve  your  conduct.  You  are  permitted 
to  graze  your  troop  in  that  neighbourhood,  for  the  reasons  you 
assign  as  the  most  effectual  means  of  doing  your  duty.  Major 
Chaban  must  be  acquainted  with  the  General's  intentions  in  that 
respect ;  and  you  are  likewise  to  let  him  know  that  he  and  the 
rest  of  the  regiment  have  no  right  to  claim  any  share  of  seizures 
made  by  your  troop  when  in  separate  quarters. 

The  General  is  satisfied  with  what  you  have  done  in  regard  to 
the  meeting  house,  and  the  money  may  be  applied  as  you  think 
proper.  Young  Fletcher's  effects  are  to  be  secured,  but  not  dis- 
posed of  till  further  orders.     If  you  think  the  attestation  of 

1  I  owe  a  knowledge  of  these  letters  to  Mr.  Charles  Dalton,  editor  of  the 
English  Army  Lists, 


RETURNS   TO   LONDON  69 

Mr.  Watson's  ^  wan-ant  a  sufficient  proof  of  his  having  acted  in 
treasonable  manner,  you  are   to  make   yourself  master  of  his 
person,  and  confine  him  at  Montrose  with  the  rest. 
I  am.  Sir,  your  most  obedient  humble  Servant, 

James  Wolfe,  Aid-de-Camp  to  General  Hawley. 

Fort-Augustus,  June  \lth,  1746. 

To  Captain  Hamilton. 

Sir, — General  Hawley  acquainted  the  Duke  with  the  purport 
of  your  letter,  who  w^as  very  well  satisfied  with  your  conduct,  and 
you  have  leave  to  dispose  of  the  effects  of  Brown  and  Watson, 
but  nothing  further  is  to  be  done  in  Fletcher's  affairs. 

The  General  bid  me  tell  you  that  when  any  seizures  were 
made  of  cattle  or  otherwise  in  this  part  of  the  world,  the  com- 
manding-officer and  every  person  concerned  have  shares  in 
proportion  to  your  pay.  You  mention  Mr.  Doway  to  me  as  a 
person  to  be  recommended,  but  at  the  same  time  say  you  have 
very  little  knowledge  of  him  ;  as  I  have  much  less,  and  no  more 
interest  here  than  you  have,  I  think  if  you  have  found  him 
serviceable  to  you,  w  ill  not  neglect  an  occasion  of  rewarding  him, 
as  it  is  not  known  when  the  troops  will  move  from  hence,  or 
what  road  General  Hawley  will  go.  I'm  sorry  to  let  you  know 
it's  impossible  for  me  to  appoint  any  place  for  your  seeing  him. 
I  am,  Sir,  your  most  obedient  humble  Servant, 

J.  Wolfe,  Aid-de-Camp  to  General  Hawley. 

(On  the  letter  is  written :  "  This  letter  was  brought  me  from 
Fort- Augustus  by  Baillie  Doway  on  Tuesday  22nd  July,  1746.) 

With  Cumberland's  departure  the  Royal  army  began  to  melt 
away.  Wolfe's,  Pulteney's  and  other  regiments  accompanied  him 
to  Flanders,  where  a  new  campaign  was  beginning.  Others  were 
dispatched  to  Stirling  and  other  Scottish  localities.  Major  Wolfe 
remained  behind,  being  sent  w4th  a  company  to  reconstruct  the 
little  fort  of  Inversnaid,  situate  between  Lochs  Lomond  and  Katrine, 
which  had  been  wrecked  by  the  insurgents.  Here  he  remained 
until  late  in  November  1746,  when  he  received  orders  to  rejoin  his 
regiment  on  the  Continent  in  six  weeks'  time,  with  a  prospect  of 
further  fighting.  The  interval  would  enable  the  brevet-major, 
who  was  just  completing  his  twentieth  year,  to  pass  the  Christmas 
holidays  with  his  parents  in  London. 

^  David  Watson^  afterwards  Quartermaster-General  in  Scotland. 


70    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

We  still  may  see,  on  the  east  side  of  Old  Burlington  Street, 
scarce  a  stone's  throw  from  the  rear  of  Burlington  House, 
Piccadilly,  the  town  house  of  the  Wolfes.  It  is  one  of  several 
plain-fronted,  substantial  brick  mansions  built  about  the  very  time 
that  James  Wolfe  was  born.^  Here  the  old  General,  now  some- 
what recovered  from  the  effects  of  his  active  service  in  the  North, 
and  his  lady,  greeted  their  son  on  his  return  to  London  in  the  last 
month  of  the  year  1746. 

After  the  first  warmth  of  the  greeting  had  passed  away,  and 
James  began  to  lay  before  his  sire  his  plans  for  a  Continental  out- 
fit, he  found  the  General  in  a  fit  of  economy  and  by  no  means  the 
best  of  tempers.  The  Government,  he  complained,  had  plenty  of 
money  for  the  Queen  of  Hungary,  and  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  and 
for  every  petty  German  Prince  who  chose  to  ask  it,  but  not  enough 
to  pay  its  own  soldiers.  His  own  salary  as  Inspector  of  Marines 
was  three  years  in  arrears.  He  told  James  he  had  memorialized 
the  Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty,  under  whose  direction 
he  had  held  office.  Their  lordships  had  referred  him  to  Pelham, 
First  Lord  of  the  Treasury,  who  referred  him  to  the  Secretary  at 
War,  who  referred  him  back  to  the  First  Lord  of  the  Treasury. 
The  General  had  a  horror,  he  said,  of  being  regarded  as  a  dun,  but 
he  seems  on  the  whole  to  have  been  a  very  good  business  man,  or 
Mrs.  Wolfe  was  a  very  good  business  woman,  and  he  ultimately 
received  whatever  was  owing  him.  We  will  have  occasion  in  the 
sequel  of  this  narrative  to  see  Mrs.  Wolfe  petitioning  with  great 
persistency  the  ruling  powers  in  order  to  obtain  her  celebrated  son'*s 
back  pay  and  the  result  of  such  petitioning.     James's  income  at 

1  Mr.  H.  B.  Wheatley,  the  topographer,  writes  me  :  '^  When  Burlington 
House  was  first  built  the  gardens  extended  to  the  end  of  what  afterwards 
became  Savile  Row,  as  may  be  seen  from  Kip's  view  of  the  house  and  gardens, 
but  when  the  third  Earl  rebuilt  the  house  he  cut  off  the  gardens  where  the 
thoroughfare  called  Burlington  Gardens  now  exists,  and  by  virtue  of  an  Act 
of  Parliament  (1717-18)  laid  out  the  ground  known  as  Ten  Acres  Field  in 
building  plots. 

*'  Queensberry  House,  on  the  site  of  Uxbridge  House  (now  the  Bank  of 
England),  was  one  of  the  first  buildings  (1721).  It  is  probable  that  the 
gardens  were  cut  off  before  this,  because  Vigo  Street  ran  on  to  Bond  Street 
and  was  known  as  Vigo  Lane.  As  the  Battle  of  Vigo  was  fought  in  1702,  the 
name  must  have  been  given  when  the  victory  was  fresh  in  public  memory. 

"  Old  Burlington  Street  was  called  No  well  Street  in  1729,  but  in  1733  had 
become  Great  Burlington  Street — New  Burlington  Street  was  originally  Little 
Burlington  Street.  Burlington  House  always  fronted  Piccadilly  (with  a 
large  forecourt  and  wall).  I  remember  the  old  gardens  at  the  back  which 
extended  to  Burlington  Gardens."  The  Wolfe  mansion  might  well  be  indi- 
cated by  a  Tablet,  as  a  place  of  historic  interest. 


LIEUT. -GENEPwAL   EDWAKD   WOLFE 
From  the  portrait  hy  Thornhill,  in  the  possession  of  Beetles  Willson,  Esq.,  Westerham 


IN   HOLLAND  AGAIN  71 

present  was  hardly  equal  to  fitting  him  out  for  the  Netherlands, 
and  his  usually  liberal  father  told  him  flatly,  what  he  wrote  to 
the  Duke  of  Bedford,  that  in  consequence  of  his  Inspector- 
Generalship  of  Marines  he  "  was  in  a  worse  position  than  any  man 
who  had  the  honour  of  having  a  regiment  in  His  Majesty's  service.""  ^ 
But  this  was  probably  in  a  manner  of  speaking.  Wolfe  got  all  he 
needed,  and  after  some  weeks  in  to^vn  sailed  with  his  regiment  for 
Holland  early  in  January  1747. 


To  HIS  Father. 

Camp  near  Breda,  Feb.  15,  1747. 
Dear  Sir, — There  is  such  a  dearth  at  present  of  everything 
new  and  entertaining,  it  seems  no  easy  task  to  fill  a  letter ;  at 
least  to  give  it  such  a  turn  as  may  please.     We  military  men, 
don't  accustom  ourselves  to  moral  topics,  or  seldom  entertain  one 
another  with  subjects  which  are  out  of  the  common  role,  from  the 
frequent  occasion  we  have  to  mention  our  own  affairs,  which,  in 
time  of  war,  are  of  no  small  extent  and  concern.     Possibly  our 
manner  of  writing  may  proceed  in  some  measure  from  diffidence 
and  modesty,  as  not  caring  to  attempt   things,   that   we   are 
sensible  have  been  better  touched  upon,  and  rather  choose  to  be 
confined  to  that  particular  branch  of  knowledge  with  which  we 
are  supposed  to  be  well  acquainted.     Nine-tenths  of  the  letters 
from  hence,  I  am  persuaded,  are  filled  with  observations  from 
what  occurs  in  the  army  in  general,  or  in  the  particular  battalion 
to  which   the   writer   belongs.     I  know   or   at  least  guess  by 
myself,  how  much  every  man's  attention  is  taken  up  with  the 
things  about  him ;  and  the  use  of  thinking  constantly  on  the 
same  matter  weighs  greatly  with  the  mind,  and  in  time  becomes 
its  first  principle,  so  that  setting  aside  a  man's  modesty  and  his 
diffidence,  he  has  little  else  to  talk  of.     I  am   led  into   this 
observation  by  a  discourse  at  Gen.  Howard's  an  hour  ago,  of 
the  difficulty  some  people  there  said  they  were  under  for  want  of 
sufficient  variety  of  occurrences  to  fill  up  their  paper ;  and  so 
put  off  testifying  their  love  to  their  friends  till  next  post.    Now, 
I  was  secure,  certain,  that  you  could  expect  nothing  very  extra- 
ordinary or  amusing  in  the  way  we  are  in,  and  that  your  good 
nature  and  friendship  would  have  been  satisfied,  to  have  known 
your  son  in  health,  and  to  have  had  a  mark  of  his  respect  and 

*  Bedford  Correspondence,  vol.  i.  p.  123 ;  Wright,  p.  96. 


72    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

affection  for  his  parents  expressed  in  ever  so  few  lines.    I  heartily 
wish  you  health,  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
My  love  to  my  mother. 

The  British  section  of  the  Allies  assembled  near  Maestricht 
numbered  all  told  8000  English,  18,000  Hanoverians,  and  6000 
Hessians.  These  were  under  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  who  was 
also  given  supreme  command  of  the  entire  forces,  including 
Austrians,  Dutch  and  Bavarians  numbering  126,000  men. 

Our  hero  occupied  the  leisure  which  the  commander's  tardiness 
afforded  him  to  carry  on  a  lively  correspondence  with  a  young  lady 
then  resident  in  Brussels. 

To  Miss  Lacey, 

Camp  of  Bonvel,  May  21,  1747. 

Dear  Miss  Lacey, — If  it  is  necessary  to  be  convinced  of 
your  good  sense,  I  would  desire  you  to  write  and  nobody  would 
doubt  it.  But  as  I  have  been  long  assured  of  it,  I  should  be 
greatly  deficient  if  I  did  not  admire  its  effects,  so  I  think  you 
may  observe  it  which  ever  way  you  converse  with  me  you  have 
the  means  of  pleasing. 

I  was  doing  the  greatest  injustice  to  the  dear  girls,  your 
friends  to  admit  the  least  doubt  of  their  constancy,  I  mean  to 
your  person  ;  perhaps  with  respect  to  ourselves  there  may  be 
cause  of  complaint.  Carleton  I'm  afraid  is  a  recent  example  of 
it.  Madam  Sawyer  has  seen  variety,  is  generally  admired,  and 
consequently  unique.  The  other  young  one  might  admit  of  an 
impression  at  first,  but  a  few  more  years  maternal  instruction 
will  divest  her  of  any  inclination  to  unnecessary  attachment. 

Yoiu*  time  must  pass  agreeably ;  nothing  from  us  has  yet 
given  occasion  to  prevent  it  nor  do  I  see  any  immediate  proba- 
bility of  a  change  in  our  situation.  We  are  here  the  guardians 
of  the  Republic,  and  since  their  reformation,  I  begin  to  think 
them  worth  our  care. 

I  hope  you  have  found  a  sufficient  number  of  men  to  be  of 
your  parties.  That  "M.  Gravesend""^  supports  his  credit  I  cannot 
doubt,  or  as  I  may  now  properly  say,  has  resumed  his  tyranny. 
Your  spirit,  I  think,  will  never  submit  to  such  a  sway,  how  great 

^  A  jocose  nickname  for  one  of  the  English  officers. 


MISS   LACEY  73 

soever  may  be  the  scarcity ;  if  you  are  moved  the  object  will 
have  merit.  This  letter  you  will  be  so  good  to  direct,  and  let  it  be 
sent  to  the  embroiderer ;  If  you  think  my  manner  of  correcting 
too  harsh,  it  is  left  for  you  to  soften  ;  sure  they  must  be  dense 
if  my  French  is  useless,  unless  it  could  be  in  the  least  thought 
otherwise  by  you.  Thafs  an  acquisition  you  have  at  heart, 
and  as  you  are  now  placed  to  advantage  in  that  particular, 
you  certainly  won't  neglect.  I'm  your  old  friend's  faithful 
adherent  still,  and  could  hear  her  talk  with  pleasiu-e ;  tho'  the 
tale  is  long,  'tis  harmonious  from  her  tongue. 

Mrs.  Lee  I  fancy  contributes  to  soften  the  Dutch  dialect  and 
make  rugged  seem  smooth,  at  least  if  I  don't  mistake  her 
character.  The  Captain  is  perhaps  one  amongst  us  the  most  to 
be  envied,  within  reach  of  his  wishes,  and  not  subject  to  accidents 
that  might  be  the  consequence  of  a  bold  excursion  to  the  Basch 
from  one  of  us.  'Tis  dangerous  riding  backwards  and  forwards 
if  a  man  is  not  master  of  his  time. 

My  neighbour  Bernard  has  great  pleasure  in  knowing  you 
are  well ;  he  speaks  of  you  with  esteem  and  affection,  and  bids  me 
be  careful  to  make  you  his  compliments.  I  heartily  make  mine 
to  your  friends,  and  am,  dear  Miss,  most  sincerely  your  friend 
and  admirer 

J.  Wolfe. 


His  fair  correspondent  was  of  Irish  birth,  the  daughter  of 
General  Lacey  in  the  Austrian  service,  himself  related  to  the 
Russian  Field  Marshal  Count  Lacey.  A  little  harmless  flirtation 
of  this  kind  doubtless  helped  to  make  the  time  pass  agreeably: 
and  we  may  acquit  Wolfe  of  having  any  serious  designs  on  the 
lady's  heart. 


To  Miss  Lacey. 

Camp  of  Westerloo,  June  l\th,  N.S.,  1747. 
Dear  Miss  Lacey, — As  I  have  showed  great  impatience  to 
procure  my  coat,  I  conceive  how  great  yours  must  be  to  hear  I 
have  got  it.  With  that  consideration  and  the  great  pleasure  of 
seizing  the  first  opportunity  to  speak  my  gratitude  and  return  a 
thousand  thanks,  I  put  this  into  your  father's  hands  for  a 
quicker  and  surer  conveyance,  and  am,  I  assure  you,  infinitely 
obliged  to  you.  Though  it  comes  late  'tis  not  less  necessary ; 
one  strong  reason  is  to  convince  any  amongst  us  that  no  views 


74     LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

of  preferment  shall  ever  alter  my  observance  of  superior  duty 
nor  the  expense  (however  unreasonable)  shall  ever  prevent  my 
conforming.  I  take  the  liberty  to  enclose  another  letter  to 
M.  Lebrun  in  which  he  may  easily  observe  my  sentiments  ;  you 
will  judge  of  them  equity,  by  the  past  of  his  conduct  which 
relates  to  you.^ 

Your  affection  for  your  father  (one  amongst  the  many 
estimable  points  of  your  character)  makes  you  see  dangers  at  too 
great  a  distance,  and  you  too  readily  admit  fears  which  to 
me  appear  groundless.  I  may  be  wrong  in  my  conjectures,  but, 
unless  the  French  attempt  Maestricht  or  pretend  to  act  offen- 
sively, I  think  this  campaign  will  not  be  less  inactive  than  the 
preceeding  ones.  The  implacable  enemy  may  however  depend 
on  their  former  success  and  use  it  as  a  motive  to  new  enterprises  ; 
in  that  case,  be  assured,  that  nothing  a  fine  army  can  undertake 
in  their  defence  will  be  wanting  for  their  preservation. 

You  have  left  me  in  a  doubt  that  is  hurtful  to  my  repose. 
Sure  it  must  never  happen  that  a  soldier  can  be  unhappy  in  his 
love  ;  if  so,  what  reward  for  great  and  glorious  undertakings,  or 
what  relief  from  despair  ?  Can  we  be  forgot  in  the  midst  of 
danger  and  fatigue  ?  But  worse  than  this,  shall  I  live  to  see 
an  inhabitant  of  the  bush  succeed  to  my  place  and  triumph  in 
the  frailty  of  my  country-woman  ?  Explain  that  part  as  you 
think  me  safe,  or  deny  a  thought  on*'t. 

I  have  been  a  fortnight  detached  from  the  army.  Our 
situation  has  been  agreeable  and  might  have  been  honourable, 
would  the  enemy  have  waited  our  attempts ;  but  their  idleness 
has  denied  us  the  pleasure  of  conquest.  I  speak  rather  positively 
on  this  subject,  but  when  I  speak  of  war,  I'm  sensible,  tho'  a 
soldier,  that  there  is  One  who  directs. 

I  write  this  in  a  moment  of  reflection  ;  you'll  pardon  the 
style,  'tis  unusual  and  has  not  in  it  that  turn  of  gaiety  that 
would  perhaps  be  more  pleasing  to  you ;  but  'tis  nevertheless  of 
the  sort  you  must  sometimes  expect  in  your  conversation  with 
men,  particularly  those  whose  situation  should  make  them  often 
subject  to  serious  hours.  I'm  glad  to  catch  myself  in  such  a  dis- 
position and  think  it  the  beginning  of  reform.  My  wishes  are 
never  wanting  for  your  health  and  happiness  of  you  and  your 


^  This  is  all  pure  raillery.  Lebrun  was  the  embroiderer  in  whose  hands 
was  the  splendid  scarlet  officer's  coat  whose  elaboration  Miss  Lac  y  had 
volunteered  to  superintend. 


BATTLE   OF  LAFFELDT  75 

pretty  friends.     I'll  say  it  to  my  praise  that  no  man   has   a 
greater  consideration  for  the  sex  than, 

Your  obedient  humble  servant, 

J.  W. 

I  have  directed  the  fellow  to  embroider  but  one  waistcoat. 


It  will  be  recalled  that  at  the  close  of  the  last  campaign  the 
French  had  overrun  the  Netherlands,  largely  owing  to  their  greater 
and  earlier  activity.  Cumberland  was  in  consequence  seized  with 
a  fit  of  imprudent  enterprise.  It  is  ever  unwise  for  a  general 
to  start  operations  before  he  is  ready.  After  marching  towards 
Antwerp,  Cumberland  was  obliged  to  lie  many  weeks  in  idle- 
ness because  he  was  without  siege  guns  and  forage  wagons.  The 
weather  bitterly  assailed  the  unfortunate  troops  who  hung  about 
a  spot  ten  miles  from  Breda  waiting  for  the  completion  of  simple 
arrangements  which  should  have  been  settled  before  they  had 
marched  a  step.  Yet  exposure  and  privation  could  have  been 
borne  with  greater  fortitude  than  the  derision  of  the  French,  who 
had  a  larger  army,  well  fed,  well  housed,  and  well  placed. 

Cumberland,  eventually  in  a  fit  state  to  march,  seeing  Saxe 
in  movement  and  believing  he  intended  to  besiege  Maestricht, 
set  forward  to  intercept  him.  On  June  19  the  British  reached 
Laffeldt,  a  hamlet  three  miles  west  of  Maestricht  and  the  key  of  the 
enemy''s  position.  Here  they  encountered  the  French  infantry  on 
the  morning  of  the  21st,  the  Irish  brigade  leading.  Then  ensued 
a  desperate  struggle.  Again  and  yet  again  was  the  hamlet  taken 
and  retaken.  As  fast  as  Pulteney's  and  Crawford'*s  and  the  other 
British  regiments  hurled  back  the  foe,  other  brigades  came 
pouring  in.  The  slaughter  was  dreadful.  Our  brigade-major,  ^vjir^t 
wounded,  continued  to  fight  gallantly.  At  last,  after  the  fifth  /,.  ;^" 
attempt,  overwhelming  numbers  pushed  aside  the  exhausted 
British  and  occupied  Laffeldt,  an  empty  advantage. 

Meanwhile,  Cumberland  ordered  an  advance  of  the  Dutch  and 
Austrians,  as  a  measure  of  relief  to  the  overworked  infantrymen. 
In  their  centre  was  a  body  of  Dutch  cavalry,  to  whom  was  given 
at  a  critical  moment  the  order  to  charge.  But  instead  of  facing 
the  exulting  enemy,  the  cavalry  was  seized  with  panic,  and, 
turning,  fled. 

In  vain  Cumberland  tried  to  rally  the  retreating  Dutch — the 
entire  centre  began  to  give  way,  and  the  Allied  army  was  cut 
in  two.     A  precipitate  retreat  upon  Maestricht  followed,  which 


76    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

might  have  developed  into  a  panic-stricken  flight,  but  for  the 
prompt  and  gallant  action  of  Sir  John  Ligonier.  This  officer, 
with  some  British  and  Austrian  cavalry,  charged  boldly  on  the 


French,  well  knowing  they  would  be  cut  to  pieces,  but  checking 
in  the  meantime  the  onset  of  the  foe.  Hundreds  of  splendid 
fellows  and  their  horses,  especially  of  the  Scots  Greys,  were  anni- 


WOUNDED   IN    ACTION  77 

hilated,  but  time  thereby  was  gained  for  the  infantry.  Ligonier 
himself,  horseless,  was  captured  by  a  lucky  French  carabineer.  The 
cost  to  the  Allies  of  this  day's  fighting  was  5680  in  killed  and 
wounded.  Amongst  the  latter  was  Wolfe,  who  had  received  a  ball 
in  the  body  in  the  height  of  the  action.  Never  had  he  fought  with 
greater  zeal  and  courage :  not  losing  control  of  his  brigade  for  a 
single  moment.  He  was  several  times  in  great  danger  through  the 
fight,  so  much  so  that  his  faithful  servant,  Roland,  became  alarmed 
for  his  safety.  "He  came  to  me,"  wrote  Wolfe,  long  afterwards,  "at 
the  hazard  of  his  life  in  the  last  action  with  ofl^ers  of  his  service, 
took  off  my  cloak  and  brought  a  fresh  horse;  and  would  have 
continued  close  by  me  had  I  not  ordered  him  to  retire.  I  believe 
he  was  slightly  wounded  just  at  that  time,  and  the  horse  he  held 
was  shot  likewise.  .  .  .  Many  a  time  has  he  pitched  my  tent  and 
made  the  bed  ready  to  receive  me,  half-dead  with  fatigue ;  and 
this  I  owe  to  his  diligence.""  ^  For  his  behaviour  on  the  field  that ' 
day  Wolfe  received  the  formal  thanks  of  the  Commander-in-Chief. 
Henceforward,  he  was  truly  a  marked  man.  ' 

The  battle  of  LafFeldt  was  without  any  useful  result,  except 
to  confirm  the  Allies  in  the  possession  of  Maestricht.  Having 
reinforced  the  garrison  of  the  town  so  coveted  by  the  French, 
Cumberland  crossed  the  Meuse  into  the  duchy  of  Limburg,  and 
there  encamped.  As  for  his  opponent,  despairing  of  taking 
Maestricht  that  season,  Saxe  burned  his  magazines  about  the 
close  of  August  and  decamped.  Both  armies  retired  into  winter 
quarters  in  November,  twenty  transports  landing  five  regiments 
of  foot  at  Gravesend  on  the  16th  of  that  month. 

After  being  nursed  in  field  hospital  a  few  days  for  his  wound 
Wolfe  reached  home  about  the  same  time  as  the  Duke  of  Cumber- 
land and  Sir  John  Ligonier,  the  latter  having  gained  his  freedom 
by  exchange.  Our  hero  celebrated  his  coming  of  age  at  the  house 
in  Old  Burlington  Street. 

Here  he  saw  much  of  good  society.  Not  only  did  his  parents 
have  the  entree  into  many  influential  circles,  but  being  himself, 
yoimg,  ardent,  of  a  convivial  temper,  fond  of  ladies'*  society,  it  is 
not  wonderful  that  he  should  have  been  regarded  as  a  hero  in  many 
eyes.  Thus  far,  however,  he  had  not  expressed  more  than  a  passing 
preference  for  any  of  the  fair  enchantresses  he  had  met. 

Besides   Miss   Warde,   Miss   Lacey    and   others   to   whom  he 
pays  tribute  in  his  letters,  there  came  upon  the  scene  this  winter, 
Miss  Elizabeth  Lawson,  eldest  daughter  of  Sir  Wilfrid  Lawson,  of 
1  See  Letter  postj  p.  154. 


78    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Isel.  This  young  lady  was  one  of  the  maids  of  honour  to  the 
Princess  of  Wales.  Her  mother  was  Elizabeth  Lucy  Mordaunt, 
niece  of  Charles,  third  Earl  of  Peterborough,  a  lady  whom  the 
malicious  gossips  of  the  town  credited  with  what  we,  in  modern 
times,  have  come  to  denominate  tout  courts  a  past.  Whatever 
may  have  been  the  truth  of  such  slanders  (and  very  few  of  the 
court  ladies  were  exempt  from  such  in  George  II's  day),  they  did 
not  prevent  the  lady's  daughter  from  being  a  favourite  of  her 
royal  mistress.  Wolfe  was  attracted  to  Miss  Lawson  from  the 
first,  and  the  more  he  saw  of  her  the  more  her  charms  grew  upon 
him.  Her  uncle.  General  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  was  an  old  friend 
of  his  father's,  and  himself  took  a  deep  interest  in  the  young 
brigade-major. 

At  this  time  it  was  not  certain  whether  the  Continent  was  to 
offer  a  further  field  for  active  service  or  not.  Both  sides  were 
weary  of  a  conflict  which  had  already  lasted  six  years.  In  the  spring 
of  1748,  international  plenipotentiaries  met  at  Aix-la-Chapelle. 
Notwithstanding  these  negotiations  for  peace  the  military  com- 
manders on  both  sides  resolved  to  keep  things  moving  with  vigour. 
The  Congress  opened  on  March  11,  and  a  week  or  so  later 
Wolfe  was  ordered  to  join  a  detachment  of  German  troops  in  the 
vicinity  of  Breda.  He,  therefore,  took  leave  of  his  parents  and 
London  friends,  and  set  sail  from  Harwich,  crossed  over  to  Flushing, 
and  made  his  way  to  Osterhout.  Here  he  found  that  the  Duke 
of  Cumberland's  illness,  and  Marshal  Saxe's  superior  strategy,  were 
having  their  effect  upon  the  army  of  the  Allies.  He  writes  thus  in  a 
letter  to  his  father — 


To  HIS  Fathee. 

Osterhout,  April  12,  N.S.,  1748. 

Dear  Sir, — General  Fowke  is  left  here  with  four  regiments 
of  Foot,  and  eight  pieces  of  cannon,  to  assist  in  defending  this 
part  of  Holland.  The  troops  are  cantoned  in  the  village,  two 
leagues  from  Breda  and  one  from  Gertruidenberg,  and  wait  the 
orders  of  him  who  is  appointed  to  lead  the  army  here ;  'tis  at 
present  the  Prince  of  Wolfenbuttel,  but  we  are  apprehensive  of 
losing  him. 

As  a  Major  of  Brigade,  and  the  first  of  that  rank,  I  am 
here,  though  I  took  some  pains  to  avoid  it.  The  corps  that 
I  hear  is  intended  to  assemble  in  this  quarter  will  be  of  thirty- 
five  or  forty  battalions  and  some  squadrons,  unless  the  enemy's 


ENCAMPED  AT   OSTERHOUT         79 

present  undertaking  should  require  them  upon  the  Maese.  I 
hear  Maestricht  is  invested.  Marshal  Lowendahl  passed  the 
Maese  with  some  troops  at  Namur,  was  joined  by  those  that 
wintered  in  Louvain,  marched  through  a  country  that  is  almost 
impassible  in  the  finest  seasons,  seized  Limbourg,  and  is,  we  are 
told,  on  the  other  side  of  the  river,  where  our  army  lay  the 
greatest  part  of  last  campaign ;  while  M.  de  Saxe  moves  with 
the  larger  part  of  the  French  army,  and  invests  Maestricht  on 
this  side.  If  so,  the  body  of  Austrians  there  will  be  inferior 
to  either  of  these  corps,  and  will  certainly  retire,  or  rather  has 
retired,  and  leave  the  unhappy  fortress  to  its  garrison  and  a 
Dutch  commander.  I  am  much  at  a  loss  to  know  whether 
that  place  is  thought  of  such  worth  as  to  risk  a  battle  with 
disadvantage,  especially  in  numbers ;  though  the  situation  is 
such  that  a  fortunate  stroke  might  be  the  total  ruin  of  the 
besieging  army,  from  the  extreme  breadth  of  the  Maese,  and 
difficulty  of  retiring  with  a  beaten  army  over  a  bridge  or  two. 
But  if  in  two  or  three  days  these  regiments  should  move,  I  shall 
think  the  attempt  a  thing  determined,  and  be  out  of  doubt  as  to 
our  destination. 

The  Prince  of  Orange  is  expected  here  soon.  Marshal 
Bathiany  is  laid  up  with  the  gout  (and  in  an  evil  hour)  at 
Bois-le-Duc.  H.R.H.  has  been  ill  again  at  Venlo,  but  is  some- 
thing better,  and  perhaps  gone  to  Roremonde ;  the  greatest 
part  of  the  army  is  in  full  march  to  that  place.  Neither  the 
English  regiments  to  the  north,  nor  that  expected  from  the 
river,  are  yet  arrived,  though  never  so  much  wanted  as  at  this 
unlucky  time. 

I  am  preparing  to  tell  you  the  purport  of  a  conversation 
with  Colonel  Yorke,  the  then  Adjutant-General,  to  whom  I 
addressed  myself  on  being  ordered  to  remain  here.  He  said 
some  civil  things  in  relation  to  having  a  person  with  these 
people  that  was  acquainted  with  this  country,  and  the  customs 
of  the  army ;  and  proceeded  to  tell  me  that  the  Duke,  in  dis- 
course with  him,  had  expressed  great  concern  at  not  having  it  in 
his  power  to  serve  me,  but  that  his  intention  was  just,  and  he 
would  take  an  opportunity  soon  of  making  it  appear.  And 
Yorke,  as  a  secret,  told  me  H.R.H.  intended  that  Field  should 
succeed  Cossley,  and  that  he  would  give  me  the  Major's  com- 
mission of  Bragg's  regiment  for  nothing,  and  (as  he  was  pleased 
to  say)  in  order  to  my  being  Lieutenant-Colonel  to  it,  for 
Jocelyn  is   dying.     Cossley,  you  know,  is   to   go   out  with  a 


80     LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

government,  and  the  sale  of  his  company  only.  If  this  be 
true,  you  will  make  the  proper  reflections  on  it,  and  think  me 
not  much  hurt.  I'm  sure  the  thing  is  yet  far  off*,  possibly  may 
fail  as  heretofore ;  but  with  sincerity  I  assure  you,  I  am  out  of 
the  reach  of  disappointment.  I  heartily  wish  you  both  well. 
I  writ  to  my  uncle  Wat  from  Harwich,  and  foretold  the  siege 
of  Maestricht.  He  will  be  astonished  at  their  early  proceeding, 
and  equally  displeased  with  us.  My  duty  to  my  mother. 
I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

I  have  bought  Jemmy  Streton  a  horse  and  he  has  writ  to  the 
Captain  to  pay  £1  to  my  banker  or  agent. 

Wolfe's  references  in  the  foregoing  to  the  Duke  of  Cumberland 
show  that  he  still  retained  the  good  graces  of  the  Commander-in- 
Chief.  Indeed,  it  is  much  to  Cumberland's  credit  that  he,  from 
the  first,  detected  the  merits  of  the  young  officer.  Wolfe's  duties 
with  the  foreign  corps  were  very  arduous.  Existing  documents 
show  that  he  was  given  control  of  the  commissariat  of  that  detach- 
ment, corresponded  with  bread  and  beef  contractors,  and  issued 
orders  for  forage.  In  whatever  capacity  he  was  employed  he 
evinced  his  thoroughness.  He  could  be  relied  upon,  and  that  was 
probably  more  than  could  be  said  of  nine-tenths  of  the  young 
officers  of  that  day. 

Daily  some  issue  was  expected  from  the  Congress  at  Aix-la- 
Chapelle,  to  which  Lord  Sandwich  had  been  dispatched  as  plenipo- 
tentiary. The  Duke  of  Newcastle,  the  leader  of  the  war  party  at 
home,  had  himself  nominated  Sandwich  for  this  post,  and  the  two 
shortly  afterwards  met  in  Flanders. 

Wolfe  writes  about  the  middle  of  April — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Vjth  April,  1748. 

Dear  Sir, — The  Duke  of  Newcastle  and  Lord  Sandwich  are 
expected  at  the  army  in  a  few  days ;  they  will  see  the  sight,  and 
go  off.  .  .  .  The  Imperialists  march  to-morrow  towards  Rure- 
monde.  The  neighbourhood  of  Bois-le-Duc  cannot  furnish  to  an 
army  without  money.  These  troops  must  receive  great  assistance 
from  the  country  about  them.  The  conferences  at  Aix  are  rather 
languid ;  the  warlike  spirit  conceives  favourably,  from  the  interest 
or  intrigue  perhaps  of  some  mischievous  particular,  who  may 


TREATY   OF   AIX-LA-CHAPELLE     81 

retard  the  general  good,  and  keep  the  world  in  arms.  Sincerely 
I  believe  you'll  think  I'm  crazy  in  the  brain.  In  one  letter  I  tell 
you  all  is  at  an  end,  and  in  the  next  that  things  have  a  fairer 
face.  I'm  sorry  to  say  that  my  writings  are  greatly  influenced 
by  the  state  of  my  body  or  mind  at  the  time  of  writing ;  and  Fm 
either  happy  or  ruined  by  my  last  night's  rest,  or  from  sunshine, 
or  light  and  sickly  air  :  such  infirmity  is  the  mortal  frame  sub- 
ject to.  I  thank  you  for  the  part  you  are  so  ready  to  act  in  my 
behalf.  Your  officers  are  all  well,  and  free  from  complaint,  as 
from  any  cause. 

Marshal  Saxe  having  invested  Maestricht,  drove  the  Austrians 
back  to  Ruremond,  with  the  loss  of  their  stores  and  powder.  But 
the  combined  Dutch  and  English,  lacking  the  reinforcements  of 
the  Russians,  who  had  not  yet  arrived,  were  too  weak  to  do  very 
much  to  prevent  the  fall  of  the  fortress.  When  it  fell,  Holland 
would  be  invaded.  In  these  circumstances,  the  British  Government 
were  only  too  ready  to  accept  the  terms  of  peace  which  France 
offered  at  the  Congress.  So,  while  the  ministers  of  the  other 
Powers  declined  to  join,  late  at  night  on  the  30th  of  April,  N.S.,; 
the  English,  Dutch  and  French  plenipotentiaries  set  their  names  to  f 
the  Treaty  of  Peace. 

But  while  the  negotiations  were  going  on,  the  enemy  had 
approached  close  to  the  beleaguered  city,  which  they  attacked  and 
carried  the  covered  way,  with  the  loss  of  900  grenadiers.  Their 
triumph  was  brief,  however,  for  Baron  D'Aylva,  the  Governor  of 
Maestricht,  sallied  forth  and  put  them  to  flight  with  heavy  loss. 
All  doubt  about  the  result  was  cut  short  by  the  news  of  the  sign- 
ing of  the  Treaty  of  Peace,  and  orders  for  hostilities  to  cease. 
Cumberland,  whose  military  reputation  had  hardly  been  increased 
by  this  campaign,  dispatched  an  officer  to  Baron  D'Aylva,  in- 
structing him  to  turn  over  the  fortress  to  Marshal  Saxe  until  the 
ratification  of  the  Treaty.  In  consequence  of  this,  the  garrison 
marched  out  with  all  the  honours  of  war  on  the  3rd  of  May. 

Thus  terminated,  as  far  as  Britain  was  concerned,  the  War 
of  the  Austrian  Succession.  It  was  an  extraordinary  contest : 
England  and  France  had  begun  as  mere  allies  of  the  two  powers, 
Austria  and  Prussia,  and  ended  by  being  the  principals.  But 
what  had  been  gained  ?  All  conquests  were  to  be  restored,  even 
that  of  Louisburg.  There  was  no  stipulation  regarding  the  first 
cause  of  the  war,  the  commercial  claims  of  England  upon  Spain, 
and  there  was  a  general  consciousness  that  France  had  the  best 
a 


82    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

of  it,  and  was  only  restrained  by  the  present  state  of  her  navy 
and  her  exchequer.  This  consciousness  was  quickened  when  it 
became  known  that  two  noble  hostages  were  to  be  sent  to  France 
to  guarantee  the  restitution  of  Louisburg.  It  gave  British 
pride  a  sad  shock.  By  no  one  was  it  more  deplored  than  by  our 
hero,  who  little  expected  when  he  cried  out  against  giving  back 
Cape  Breton  and  Louisburg,  that  fate  had  reserved  to  him  a 
chief  share  in  the  task  of  reclaiming  the  one  for  the  Empire  and 
blotting  the  other,  one  day,  from  the  face  of  the  earth. 

"Never,  perhaps,""  remarks  Stanhope,  "did  any  conflict,  after  so 
many  great  events  and  so  large  a  loss  of  blood  and  treasure,  end  in 
replacing  the  nations  engaged  in  it  so  nearly  in  the  same  situation 
as  they  were  at  first."  ^ 

All  through  that  summer  of  1748  both  armies  rested  in  their 
respective  camps.  It  was  then,  being  assured  that  no  active  service 
was  imminent  for  some  time  to  come,  that  Wolfe  desired  ardently 
to  get  prolonged  leave  from  his  regiment  for  the  purposes  of  travel. 
Although  more  than  six  years  in  the  army,  he  had  seen  little  of 
the  world.  He  had  always  been  too  hard- worked  to  have  had 
many  opportunities  for  enlarging  his  mind  or  of  acquiring  the 
accomplishments  of  a  gentleman.  His  great  fear  was  of  becoming 
narrow  and  uncouth  if  this  course  of  life  went  on,  and  he  believed 
that  travel  and  mixing  in  cultivated  society  would  make  him  the 
more  efficient  officer.  In  this  opinion  he  was  supported  by  his 
uncle,  Major  Walter  Wolfe,  with  whom  he  continued  to  keep  up  a 
spirited  correspondence.  The  old  Major  was  a  keen  soldier,  and, 
having  been  disappointed,  purely  through  the  nature  of  the  times, 
in  his  own  advancement,  took  a  deep  interest  in  that  of  his 
nephew. 

Wolfe  writes  to  his  mother — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

August  1748. 

When  you  have  anything  to  grant,  or  a  good-natured  thing 
to  say,  you  don't  lose  time.  I  got  your  letter  much  sooner 
than  I  expected,  but  upon  opening  it  easily  perceived  the 
reason. 

There  will  be  difficulties  in  everything  that  contradicts  a 
principle  or  settled  opinion,  entertained  amongst  us,  that  an 
officer  neither  can,  nor  ought  ever  to  be  otherwise  employed 
than  his  particular  military  functions.     If  they  could  beat  men'*s 

^  History  of  England,  chap.  xxx. 


WISHES   TO   TRAVEL  83 

capacities  down,  or  confine  their  genius  to  that  rule  (to  be  ob- 
served with  the  expected  nicety,  so  as  to  exclude  all  other 
attachments),  no  man  would  ever  be  fitted  for  a  higher  employ- 
ment than  he  is  in.  Tis  unaccountable  that  who  wishes  to 
see  a  good  army  can  oppose  men''s  enlarging  their  notions,  or 
acquiring  that  knowledge  with  a  little  absence  which  they  can''t 
possible  meet  with  at  home,  especially  when  they  are  supposed 
masters  of  their  present  employment  and  really  acquainted  with 
it.  In  all  other  stations  in  life,  that  method  is  usually  pursued , 
which  best  conduces  to  the  knowledge  every  one  naturally  wishes 
to  have  of  his  own  profession. 

Whether  my  request  will  be  consented  to  or  not  I  shan^'t 
pretend  to  say ;  it  depends  on  them  whether  even  I  shall  ask  it. 
Pray  tell  my  father  that  I  thank  him  much  for  his  approbation, 
but  I  can't  help  differing  both  from  him  and  you  in  your  objec- 
tion, that  I  must  lay  aside  all  thoughts  of  preferment ;  because, 
if  we  may  judge  of  what  has  happened,  attendance,  or  the  fre- 
quent offer  of  one''s  person  to  their  observation,  has  had  hitherto 
little  effect,  and  I  know  myself  secure  of  your  voices  and  en- 
deavours whether  absent  or  not ;  and  more  particularly  that,  if 
I  rise  at  all,  it  will  most  probably  be  by  the  means  of  my  father"*s 
pocket.  But,  not  to  be  tiresome  upon  this  subject,  Fm  told  that 
my  intended  journey  will  really  be  put  off*.  I  spoke  to  my 
uncle  Wat  in  my  last  letter  to  him  to  this  purpose.  Perhaps  he 
may  mention  it  to  you  with  his  sense  of  such  undertaking. 

The  sum  in  question  puts  me  into  the  very  state  you  wish 
me,  and  I  as  truly  wish  myself,  I  mean  that  of  independency ; 
and  though  I  dare  not  pray  for  money,  .^10,000  is  worth  asking 
for  fair  purposes,  and  might  be  prettily  disposed  of.  None  but 
earthly  gods  and  goddesses  are  moved  far  without  the  precious 
bane.^ 


Sure  Palliser  can'^t  in  honesty  be  partial  to  that  red  head  of 
hers,2  and  think  there  is  beauty  in  the  motly  of  white  and  yellow ; 
he  has  certainly  meant  his  speech  in  compliment  to  some  female 
of  the  fairer  kind,  within  the  hearing  of  so  much  gallantry.  He 
can  never  be  so  blind  as  to  imagine  any  perfection,  but  in  the 

1  This  is  a  reference  to  one  of  Mrs.  Wolfe's  match-making  schemes. 

2  Mrs.  Wolfe  had  written  to  say  that  one  of  his  old  Greenwich  comrades 
had  fallen  in  love  with  a  rather  plain  damsel^  whose  beauty,  however,  he  had 
insisted  upon. 

G  2 


84    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

just  medium  between  the  dismal  black  and  palid  white.  He  has 
sacrificed  his  own  opinion  and  Mrs.  Higsham's  affections  in 
pure  civility  to  the  neighbourhood  of  that  same  lady,  who 
was,  as  I  said  before,  undoubtedly  the  object  and  first  in  his 
thoughts. 

I  desire  you  will  speak  without  any  reserve,  if  there  is  here 
or  within  my  reach  whatever  you  wish  for  imagine  yourself 
mistress  of  it,  and  tell  me  how  I  may  endeavour  to  be  of  the 
least  use.  Though  I  don't  think  the  troops  will  any  of  them 
embark  till  the  end  of  October  I  would  not  have  you  lose  time 
in  fixing  upon  what  you  would  have  brought  over,  and  if  you 
know  anything  that  would  be  agreeable  to  my  father  pray 
mention  it. 

The  Duke  went  suddenly  over  to  Hanover  a  day  sooner  than 
even  he  spoke  of,  and  express  from  thence  determined  his  quick 
remove;  H.R.H.  is  expected  back  in  a  week,  but  one  aid-de- 
Camp,  or  more  properly  his  travelling  secretary  (Col.  Yorke)  is 
gone  with  him  of  all  his  retinue. 

As  to  the  bulk  of  our  correspondence,  I  know  nothing 
that  can  justly  excuse  my  putting  you  to  an  extraordinary 
expense.  Any  inclination  to  much  talk  can  never  be  a  good 
reason.  A  man  should  shorten  his  discourse,  or  learn  to 
write  close.  Everything  that  seems  to  prevent  any  scheme  of 
economy  I  am  a  bitter  enemy  to.  In  the  notions  I  entertain  at 
present,  spare  diet  and  small  beer  have  a  strong  place.  Nothing 
but  an  unlucky  knowledge  of  the  immediate  necessity  of  living 
well  and  drinking  claret  could,  sure,  persuade  me  to  such  a 
practice  in  opposition  to  good,  close,  parsimonious  maxims. 
But  what  is  there  one  may  not  be  forced  to  do,  where  the 
health  is  concerned,  however  averse  to  inclination  ?  To  repel 
the  vapours  (as  my  friend  justly  terms  them),  Jemmy  Donnellan 
and  I  are  obliged  to  have  recourse  to  a  couple  or  three  good 
things  every  day,  and  some  Bordeaux ;  the  management  of 
all  which  he  has  solely  undertaken,  and  calls  for  my  meekly 
partition. 

If  Mr.  Fox  knew  how  well  we  feed,  and  that  sometimes  the 
table  for  four  is  crowded,  he  would  be  jealous  of  our  emoluments 
and  censure  our  extravagance,  refuse  perhaps  our  arrears,  and 
cut  off  the  non-effectives.  My  duty  to  my  father.  I  always 
wish  you  both  well,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 


LEAVE   NOT   GRANTED  85 

The  paragraph  in  the  foregoing  which  relates  to  the  principles 
of  economy  is  a  good  example  of  the  writer's  playful  mood.  As  a 
matter  of  fact  his  mother  had  been  fearful  that  his  camp  diet  was 
too  rigorous  for  his  feeble  constitution,  and  in  sending  him  the 
sum  of  £50  had  urged  him  to  nourish  himself  as  generously  as 
possible.  Wolfe  was  no  gourmet,  generally  taking  the  mess  pro- 
visions as  he  found  them,  and  in  this  campaign  they  were  very  bad. 
His  supposition  that  the  corrupt  old  placeman  Fox,  the  Secretary 
of  War,  would  feel  scandalized  at  the  Lucullan  extravagance  of  the 
commissariat,  was  amusingly  fantastic. 

By  November  the  definitive  treaty  had  been  signed  a  month, 
yet  Wolfe  was  still  in  Flanders  with  the  foreign  battalions,  nor 
had  the  hoped-for  leave  of  absence  been  granted.  When,  however, 
he  next  wrote  his  mother,  a  return  to  England  was  only  a  few  weeks 
distant. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Camp,  Nesselroy,  10th  November,  1748. 

You  have  given  me  the  greatest  pleasure  imaginable  in  your 
account  of  my  father''s  situation.  He  not  only  can  walk  well, 
but  I  hope  does,  or  at  least  takes  such  exercise  as  fits  his  inclina- 
tion and  contributes  to  his  health.  I  would  recommend  the  like 
to  you,  if  I  did  not  know  how  sensible  you  are  of  the  necessity 
of  it,  and  how  ready  to  give  a  good  example.  I  have  been 
prodigiously  careful  of  my  own  thin  person,  and  I  think  have 
used  all  the  remedies,  plasters,  unguents,  etc.,  that  were  not  only 
useful,  but  even  thought  so,  in  complaisance  to  your  opinion ; 
and  I  am  thoroughly  reinstated.  Your  green  oil  in  particular 
was  of  singular  service  to  me,  for  a  hurt  I  received  by  the  falling 
of  my  horse  (not  from  my  horse),  and  that's  well  likewise. 

Captain  Thornton  is  the  only  one  of  our  countrymen  that 
thinks  our  army  worth  looking  at ;  he  was  present  at  a  review 
of  six  Wolfenbuttel  battalions,  and  expressed  both  satisfaction 
and  astonishment.  He  is  gone  away  very  well  pleased  with  his 
reception  and  entertainment.  It  is  really  surprising  that  in  the 
multitude  of  the  idle  and  curious,  it  does  not  enter  into  any  of 
their  heads  to  be  for  once  spectators  at  a  military  show,  and 
amuse  themselves  some  little  time  with  a  view  of  the  variety  of 
troops  that  compose  the  three  separate  bodies  in  the  country. 
The  English  should  accustom  themselves  to  such  sights,  that 
they  may  be  less  at  a  loss,  and  act  like  men  when  anything  new 
or  extravagant  presents  itself,  and  that  a  plaid,  whiskers,  or  a 


86    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

ruff  cap  may  not  be  esteemed  by  them  altogether  terrible  and 
invincible. 

I  received  a  letter  yesterday  from  my  father,  and  one  from 
Rickson.  The  little  man  seems  to  entertain  but  a  very  in- 
different opinion  of  widows,  and  threatens  to  be  much  better 
acquainted  before  he  engages  a  second  time ;  he  even  carries  it 
so  far  as  to  suspect  some  of  them  of  coquetry  and  deceit,  and 
with  great  earnestness  advises  his  friends  to  avoid  that  species.^ 

My  father's  good  designs  are  seen  by  me  in  the  very  light  he 
means  them  ;  but  'tis  too  late.  Other  views  and  interests  succeed 
at  the  end  of  a  war,  and  favours  are  thrown  into  quite  a  different 
channel.  For  my  particular,  I  wish  nothing  so  much  as  the 
means  of  escaping  from  the  noise  and  idleness.  I  never  till  now 
knew  our  army  otherwise  than  I  could  have  desired  it  (I  don't 
mean  as  to  the  successful  part),  but  then  I  never  knew  what  it 
was  to  wait,  in  smoke  and  subjection,  the  signing  articles  of 
peace,  and  till  now  have  always  had,  or  imagined  I  had,  a 
prospect  of  better  times.  Fm  even  flattered  with  the  distant 
view  of  a  happy  arrival  at  Gibraltar  or  Minorca, — a  very 
desirable  retreat,  and  well  adapted  to  my  years  and  inclination ! 

I  have  sold  my  poor  little  grey  mare ;  I  lamed  her  by 
accident,  and  thought  it  better  to  dismiss  her  the  service  im- 
mediately, than  wait  a  long  while  for  her  recovery,  as  has  been 
sometimes  the  custom.  I  grieved  at  parting  with  so  faithful  a 
servant,  and  have  the  comfort  to  know  she  is  in  good  hands,  will 
be  very  well  fed  and  taken  care  of  in  her  latter  days.  Such 
another  good  animal  I  shall  hardly  meet  with.  I  shall  be  very 
much  obliged  to  you  if  you  will  let  me  know  whether  a  part  of 
a  former  letter  from  you  relating  to  my  cousin  Burcher  be  true. 
I  hope  it  is  otherwise.  Mrs.  In  wood  may  give  herself  what  airs 
she  pleases,  and  boast  all  her  ability ;  but  I  shall  return,  perhaps, 
more  than  her  match.  I  have  taken  care  by  practice,  and  a 
well-regulated  attention  to  the  game,  to  prepare  myself  for  the 
greatest  trials ;  and  so  I  think  she  should  be  informed,  to  put 
her  the  more  upon  her  guard,  and  make  my  attacks  (as  they  are 
called  at  chess)  less  formidable.  I  heartily  wish  you  both  your 
health,  and  am. 

Most  dutifully  and  affectionately  your  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

I  believe  we  shall  remain  at  least  six  weeks  in  this  camp. 

^  Rickson  did  not  marry  until  1767,  when  he  espoused  Miss  Euphemia 
Bremner  of  Edinburgh. 


MAJOR  IN  THE   "TWENTIETH"     87 

By  Christmas  Wolfe  was  home  again,  and  after  the  festive  birth- 
day and  Christmas  rejoicings  were  over,  lost  little  time  in  renewing 
his  addresses  to  General  Mordaunfs  niece.  But  what  courtship 
there  was,  was  destined  again  to  be  brief,  for  on  the  15th  of  June 
1749,  he  at  last  read  his  name  in  the  Gazette  as  a  Major  of  the 
20th  Regiment.^  This  regiment,  then  known  as  "  Lord  George 
Sackville's,"  was  then  quartered  in  Stirling.  For  the  next  few 
years,  therefore,  destiny  called  him  to  Scotland.^ 

Scotland,  and  particularly  the  Highlands,  was  at  that  time  the 
place  in  the  British  Empire  which  if  it  did  not  occasion  uneasiness, 
called  for  the  most  alert  and  prudent  statesmanship.  Since  the 
effectual  repression  of  the  Rebellion,  three  years  before,  a  system 
of  "  reconstruction  "  was  demanded,  something  similar  in  character 
to  that  undergone  by  the  Southern  States  of  the  American  Union 
after  1865.  A  large  part  of  Scotland  was  in  the  hands  of  feudal 
chiefs  ruling  idle,  reckless,  ill-fed  clansmen.  In  the  report  made  by 
General  Wade  after  the  rising  of  1715,  he  observes  of  the  High- 
landers that  "  their  notions  of  virtue  and  vice  are  very  different 
from  the  more  civilized  part  of  mankind.  They  think  it  the  most 
sublime  virtue  to  pay  servile  and  abject  obedience  to  the  commands 
of  their  chieftains,  although  in  opposition  to  their  Sovereign  and 
the  laws  of  the  kingdom  ;  and  to  encourage  this  their  fidelity,  they 
are  treated  by  their  chiefs  with  great  familiarity ;  they  partake 
with  them  in  their  diversions,  and  shake  them  by  the  hand 
wherever  they  meet  them." 

Statutes  were  accordingly  passed  to  put  down  this  undue  power 
and  consequent  lawlessness.  Military  tenures  were  abolished, 
hereditary  jurisdictions  were  replaced  by  Crown  Courts,  the 
Jacobite  clergy  were  required  to  take  the  oath  of  allegiance,  and 
to  pray  publicly  for  his  Majesty  King  George.  The  clans  were  to 
be  disarmed  and  (still  more  important  in  Highland  eyes  at  least) 
the  tartan  was  placed  under  the  ban.  The  term  for  the  total 
abolition  of  the  national  garb  was  the  1st  of  August,  1747,  but 
"  Such  parts  thereof  as  are  called  the  plaid,  philabeg  or  little  kilt," 
were  forbidden  after  the  25th  of  December,  1748. 

As  long  as  the  war  was  going  on  in  Flanders  and  the  troops 
were  needed  on  the  Continent,  not  many  battalions  could  be  spared 

^  Now  the  Lancashire  Fusiliers. 

2  There  is  a  letter  from  John  Warde,  Esq.,  of  Squenyes,  to  his  brother 
George,  then  in  Scotland,  which  shows  that  Wolfe  did  not  join  the  corps  for 
some  weeks  at  least.  It  is  dated  Conduit  Street,  24th  Jan.  1749  :  "  I  saw 
Major  Wolfe  the  other  day  who  was  going  northward,  and  tells  me  he  will 
see  you." 


88    LIFE  AND  LETTERS  OF  WOLFE 

to  see  that  the  Rebellion  Statutes  were  strictly  carried  into 
execution.  But  now  that  the  war  was  over,  the  Government 
began  to  follow  up  its  initial  measures  in  Scotland.  Several 
battalions  were  ordered  north  to  garrison  the  Highland  Forts,  and 
to  hunt  out  philabegs,  non-juring  priests  and  claymores.^ 

This  was  the  state  of  affairs  and  these  the  duties  of  the 
soldiery  when  Major  Wolfe  returned  to  Scotland.  He  found  the 
20th  threatened  with  the  loss  of  its  Lieutenant-Colonel,  the  Hon. 
Edward  Cornwallis,  who  had  been  selected  to  go  out  to  Nova 
Scotia  as  Captain-General  and  Governor  of  that  new  colony.  Thus 
he  was  at  so  early  an  age  called  upon  to  act  as  commanding  officer 
of  a  regiment.  In  itself  such  a  position  was  a  trying  one,  but  the 
circumstance  of  the  troops  being  in  the  midst  of  those  speaking 
their  own  tongue  and  resenting  their  presence,  demanded  the 
highest  degree  of  tact  and  self-control.  Stirling  must  then  have 
been  far  from  an  agreeable  place  in  the  eyes  of  an  Englishman.  It 
was  dirty  and  the  inhabitants  much  addicted  to  inebriety.  The 
burghers  were  narrow  and  clannish  to  a  degree.  We  were  told 
that  none  but  a  freeman  of  some  of  their  guilds  could  embark  in 
any  business.  No  one  durst  so  much  as  sew  a  button  on  his  breeks 
or  put  a  patch  upon  his  brogues  unless  he  were  free  of  a  craft  of 
tailors  or  shoe-makers,  and  had  the  barbers  been  a  corporation  no 
one  durst  shave  himself  or  employ  a  servant  to  do  it  for  him,  with- 
out being  entered  a  freeman  of  that  trade.  Even  the  well-to-do 
inhabitants  were  frugal  to  the  point  of  parsimony.^ 

Wolfe's  first  care  was  for  the  men  under  his  charge.  His  regi- 
mental minutes  are  still  extant.  Nothing  we  have  exhibited  so  far 
in  these  pages  so  attests  the  complete  soldier.  Soon  after  his 
arrival  at  Stirling,  under  date  of  February  12,  1749,  he  wrote 
that:  "The  Major  desires  to  be  acquainted  in  writing  with 
the  men  and  the  companies  they  belong  to,  and  as  soon  as 
possible  with  their  characters,  that  he  may  know  the  proper  objects 
to  encourage  and  those  over  whom  it  will  be  necessary  to  keep  a 
strict  hand.  The  officers  are  enjoined  to  visit  the  soldiers' 
quarters  frequently ;  now  and  then  to  go  round  between  nine  and 
eleven  o'clock  at  night,  and  not  trust  to  sergeants'  reports.  They 
are  also  requested  to  watch  the  looks  of  the  privates  and  observe 

^  If  arms  were  found  in  a  Highlander's  possession,  or  if  he  wore  a 
philabeg  ;  if  a  priest  officiated  contrary  to  the  Act,  or  if  either  refused  to  take 
the  oaths  prescribed,  he  was  liable  to  six  months'  imprisonment  for  the  first 
offence,  and  transportation  to  the  American  Plantations  for  the  second. 

2  History  of  Stirling  (1794),  p.  161. 


A  STUDENT  AT  GLASGOW  89 

whether  any  of  them  were  paler  than  usual,  and  that  the  reason 
might  be  inquired  into  and  proper  means  used  to  restore  them  to 
their  former  vigoiu*.  And  subalterns  are  told  that  'a  young 
officer  should  not  think  he  does  too  much.'' ''  ^ 

At  this  time  he  did  not  know  how  long  he  would  be  stationed 
at  Stirling.  It  was  therefore  with  infinite  relief  that  in  a  few 
weeks  he  received  orders  to  march  to  Glasgow.  One  reason  in 
particular  made  him  welcome  the  change.  It  was  the  young? 
officer's  abiding  ambition  to  atone  for  the  deficiencies  in  his! 
education.  Brother  officers  at  mess  might  have  derided  this  as  an 
unnecessary  aspiration  after  an  undue  piety,  even  the  common 
soldiers  might  wonder  to  see  their  acting  Lieutenant-Colonel  taking 
to  his  school  books  again,  but  the  opportunity  was  one  not  to  be 
lost.  There  was  a  celebrated  college  at  Glasgow  (since  grown 
into  a  University)  and  capable  teachers,  so  Wolfe  put  himself  in 
their  hands.     He  writes  to  his  mother — 

Glasgow,  March  2hth,  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — Neither  my  inclination  or  interest  lead  me 
to  do  anything  that  may  disoblige  either  my  father  or  you, 
much  less  against  both,  can  I  be  persuaded,  to  oppose  your  wills  ; 
it  would  humble  me  indeed  if  you  were  once  to  suppose  that  I 
could  be  biassed  in  my  opinion  by  either  of  the  gentlemen  you 
mention,  though  they  should  receive  advice  and  assistance,  from 
the  artificial  and  fraudulent  female ;  or  that  she  (prepared  as  I 
am  against  all  her  attempts)  should  be  able  to  work  upon  me 
with  lies  and  falsehood,  her  constant  weapons ;  I  had  not 
five  minutes'  discourse  with  her,  but  in  company  with  the  others 
where  her  intimacy  is  not  yet  strong  enough  to  allow  the 
freedom  of  utterance  upon  all  subjects  ;  so  that,  what  she  might 
be  wanting  in  truth,  must  have  been  chiefly  upon  indifferent 
topics,  more  proper  to  move  one's  contempt,  than  displeasure. 
One  melancholy  proof  of  her  pernicious  example,  I  foresee  will 
appear  in  that  child  Miss  Sotheron ;  if  Jezebel  be  suffered  to 
meddle  in  her  education,  the  girl  is  undone  ;  I  pressed  the  father 
to  send  her  to  New  York  ;  his  fondness,  and  Fanny's  wickedness, 
will  be  her  distraction,  if  she  is  not  quickly  removed.  It  is  a  pity 
the  poor  thing  should  be  neglected,  for  she  appears  ready 
enough  on  her  part  to  do  what  is  right. 

You  have  mistaken  that  part  of  my  letter  where  Masterman 

1  Major  Wolfe's  Order-book  is  preserved  at  the  United  Service  Institution. 


90    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

is  named.  Billy  Sotheron  ^  does  not  speak  of  him  as  any  hindrance 
to  his  showing  the  respect  due  to  his  aunt,  but  as  one  cunning, 
and  insinuating,  execrably  bent  to  find  his  advantages  in  the 
ruins  of  your  family  :  that  is  the  light  he  sees  him  in,  and  I  dare- 
say a  just  one.  This  Mr.  Sotheron's  behaviour  may  easily  be 
accounted  for  when  I  tell  you  that  he  is  the  most  consummate 
rake  of  all  my  acquaintances,  indolent,  negligent,  and  vicious, 
with  a  great  share  of  good  nature,  and  quick  sense  enough,  but 
withal  so  idle  and  a  victim  to  debauchery,  that  I  believe  you 
had  almost  as  great  a  share  of  his  company  as  any  of  his 
relations  in  London,  at  least  he  assures  me  so. 

Col.  Cornwallis  does  certainly  go  to  Nova  Scotia  for  New 
Scotland  :  he  is  to  be  absent  two  years  :  all  his  share  of  duty  will 
then  fall  upon  me :  six  or  seven  campaigns,  and  an  age  in  Scot- 
land. I  shall  be  sick  of  my  office  :  the  very  bloom  of  life  nipped 
in  this  northern  climate.  I  am  determined  to  make  the  same 
use  of  my  stay  here,  at  least ;  two  hours  every  day  are  given  up 
to  application  :  in  the  morning  I  have  a  time  to  instruct  me  in 
I  mathematics  :  and  in  the  afternoon  another  comes  to  assist  me  to 
regain  my  almost  lost  Latin.  The  College  furnishes  abundantly 
all  the  arts  of  learning  to  the  inquisitive.  My  horses  will  be 
here  in  a  day  or  two :  they  have  cost  me  forty-five  guineas.  I 
am  half  undone  with  these  expenses. 

Be  so  good  to  pay  Mr.  Fourmantel  for  the  wig :  ^  it  will  be 
about  thirty  shillings.  A  Sergeant  of  this  regiment  is  gone  to 
London :  I  bid  him  call  upon  you  :  he  may  bring  it.  The 
man  is  very  honest  and  an  excellent  sergeant :  Edwards  is  his 
name. 

I  must  make  use  of  your  interest  with  the  General,  my 
father,  to  bring  about  my  purpose.  Will  you  desire  him  to  let 
Mr.  Fisher  give  me  credit  for  any  sum  not  exceeding  four- 
score pounds,  the  money  due  to  me,  for  my  old  post  ?  Not  that 
I  want  it  all  at  present,  or  would  draw  for  the  whole  treasure  at 
a  time  ;  but  a  part  is  absolutely  necessary.  It  would  be  very 
easy  to  make  that  appear,  if  I  were  to  enumerate  the  different 
articles  of  expense  that  necessarily  attend  a  supreme  command  in 
such  a  place  as  Glasgow ;  and  I  don''t  apprehend  you  would  wish 
Major  Wolfe  should  distinguish  himself  the  worst  way.  I  give 
you  my  word  that  the  common  demand  for  my  horse,  servants, 

1  William  Sotheron^  his  cousin. 

2  The  absurd  legend  that  Wolfe  never  wore  wigs  is  sufficiently  refuted 
elsewhere. 


A   STUDENT  AT   GLASGOW  91 

washing,  lodging,  and  diet,  is  no  less  than  three  pounds  ten 
shillings  a  week.  Judge  then  what  there  is  over,  for  many  other 
things  not  less  requisite,  at  fifteen  pounds  a  month !  I  reckon 
myself  to  have  a  shilling  a  day  for  what  they  call  pocket  money. 
God  forbid  every  part  of  Scotland  should  be  of  the  same  ex- 
hausting nature  with  this.  If  my  father  consents,  as  I  have  no 
reason  in  the  world  to  doubt  it  from  his  constant  friendship  and 
goodness,  will  you  be  so  kind  to  inform  me,  and  let  me  know 
Fisher's  christian  name  and  place  of  abode.^  My  duty  to  my 
father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — My  horses  are  this  moment  arrived  and  both  lame,  etc., 
with  travelling  only. 

There  were  then  no  barracks  in  Glasgow,  and  the  house  occupied 
by  Wolfe  in  Camlachie,  a  suburb  of  the  city,  was  still  standing  a 
few  years  ago.  It  had  been  built  in  1720  by  Walkinshaw,  the 
father  of  Prince  Charlie's  mistress,  and  was  owned  in  Wolfe's  day 
by  a  Mr.  Orr  of  Burrowfield. 

1  Thomas  Fisher,  an  Army  agent,  lived  in  Axe  Yard,  Westminster. 


VI 

LIFE   IN   GLASGOW 

Amongst  Wolfe's  most  intimate  friends  whose  name  has  already 
occurred  in  these  letters  was  William  Rickson,  who  had  been  a 
lieutenant  in  General  Wolfe's  regiment,  and  was  now  a  captain  in 
the  47th  Foot  (Lascelle's  regiment,  stationed  in  Dublin).  Rickson 
was  an  earnest,  ardent  young  man,  considerably  Wolfe's  elder,^  and 
an  unbounded  admirer  of  his  friend's  talents.  Many  of  Wolfe's 
best  letters  are  addressed  to  Rickson.  Thus  he  writes  from  his 
Camlachie  lodgings — 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

Glasgow,  April  2,  1749. 
Dear  Rickson, — When  I  saw  your  writing  upon  the  Back 
of  a  letter,  I  concluded  it  was  in  consequence  of  the  mandate 

1  sent  you  by  Lt.  Herries,  of  this  Regiment  (that  letter  he 
carried  upon  your  account  and  mine,  not  his  own,  as  you  will 
easily  discover);  but  I  find  myself  more  in  your  debt  than  I 
expected.  'Twas  your  desire  to  please,  and  to  express  the  part 
you  take  in  your  friends'  good  fortune.  These  were  the  motives 
that  persuaded  you  to  do  what  you  knew  would  be  agreeable. 
You'll  believe  me,  when  I  tell  you  that,  in  my  esteem,  few  of 
what  we  call  advantages  in  life  would  be  worth  acceptance  if 
none  were  to  partake  them  with  us.  What  a  wretch  is  he  who 
lives  for  himself  alone !  his  only  aim.  It  is  the  first  degree  of 
happiness  here  below,  that  the  honest,  the  brave,  and  estimable 
part  of  mankind,  or,  at  least,  some  amongst  them,  share  our 
success.  There  were  several  reasons  concurring  to  have  sent  me 
into  Italy,  if  this  had  not  happened  [his  promotion]  to  prevent 
my  intention.  One  was  to  avoid  the  mortifying  circumstance  of 
going,  a  Captain,  to  Inverness.^  Disappointed  of  my  sanguine 
hopes,  humbled  to  an  excess,  I  could  not  remain  in  the  Army 
and  refuse  to  do  the  duty  of  my  office  while  I  staid  in  Britain. 
Many  things,  I  thought,  were   and   still    are  wanting   to  my 

^  He  was  born  in  1719. 

2  His  commission  as    Brigade-major  ended  with  the  war  :    and  he  had 
previously  only  held  brevet-rank  of  Major. 

92 


LIFE   IN   GLASGOW  93 

education.  Certain  never  to  reap  any  advantages  that  way  with 
the  regiment :  on  the  contrary,  your  barren  battaUon  con- 
versation rather  blunts  the  faculties  than  improves  my  youth 
and  vigour  bestowed  idly  in  Scotland;  my  temper  daily 
changed  with  discontent ;  and  from  a  man  become  martinet  or 
a  monster. 

You  shall  hear  in  justice  (and  in  return  for  your  confidence) 
that  I  am  not  less  smitten  than  yourself.  The  winter  we  were 
in  London  together  I  sometimes  saw  Miss  Lawson,  the  maid  of 
honour,  G.  Mordaunt's  niece.  She  pleased  me  then ;  but  the 
campaign  in  view,  battledore  and  dangerous,  left  little  thought 
for  love.  The  last  time  I  was  in  town,  only  three  weeks,  I  was 
several  times  with  her, — sometimes  in  public,  sometimes  at  her 
uncle's,  and  two  or  three  times  at  her  own  house.  She  made  a 
surprising  progress  in  that  short  time,  and  won  all  my  affections. 
Some  people  reckon  her  handsome ;  but  I,  that  am  her  lover, 
don't  think  her  a  beauty.^  She  has  much  sweetness  of  temper, 
sense  enough,  and  is  very  civil  and  engaging  in  her  behaviour. 
She  refused  a  clergyman  with  .£^1300  a  year,  and  is  at  present 
addressed  by  a  very  rich  knight;  but  to  your  antagonist's 
advantage,  he  has  that  of  being  mad  added,  so  that  I  hold  him 
cheap.  In  point  of  fortune,  she  has  no  more  than  I  have  a  right 
to  expect,  viz.  <£*!  2,000.  The  maid  is  tall  and  thin,  about  my 
o^vn  age,  and  that's  the  only  objection !  I  endeavoured,  with 
the  assistance  of  all  the  art  I  was  master  of,  to  find  out  how 
any  serious  proposal  would  be  received  by  Mordaunt  and  her 
mother.  It  did  not  appear  that  they  would  be  very  averse  to 
such  a  scheme ;  but  as  I  am  but  twenty-two  and  three  months 
it  is  rather  early  for  that  sort  of  project ;  and  if  I  don't  attempt 
her,  somebody  else  will.  The  General  and  Mrs.  Wolfe  are 
rather  against  it,  from  other  more  interested  views,  as  they 
imagine.  They  have  their  eye  upon  one  of  c£30,000.2  If  ^ 
company  in  the  Guards  is  bought  for  me,  or  I  should  be  happy 
enough  to  purchase  any  lieutenant-colonel's  commission  within 
this  twelvemonth,  I  shall  certainly  ask  the  question  ;  but  if  I'm 
kept  long  here,  the  fire  will  be  extinguished.  Young  flames 
must  be  constantly  fed,  or  they'll  evaporate.  I  have  done  with 
this  subject,  and  do  you  be  silent  upon  it. 

*  This  is  a  lover's  whim.     Miss  Lawson,  as  her  portrait  reveals,  was  a 
beauty. 

2  Miss  Hoskins,  of  Croydon. 


94    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Cornwallis  is  preparing  all  things  for  Nova  Scotia;  his 
absence  will  over-bother  me ;  my  stay  must  be  everlasting  ;  and 
thou  know'st,  Hal,  how  I  hate  compulsion.  I'd  rather  be  Major 
upon  half  pay,  by  my  soul !  These  are  all  new  men  to  me,  and 
many  of  them  but  of  low  mettle.  Besides,  I  am  by  no  means 
ambitious  of  command  when  that  command  obliges  me  to  reside 
far  from  my  own,  surrounded  either  with  flatterers  or  spies  and 
in  a  country  not  at  all  to  my  taste.  Would  to  God  you  had  a 
company  in  this  Regiment,  that  I  might  at  last  find  some  com- 
fort in  your  conversation.  Cornwallis  asks  to  have  Loftus  with 
him.     The  Duke  laughed  at  the  request  and  refused  him. 

You  know  I  am  but  a  very  indifferent  scholar.  When  a 
man  leaves  his  studies  at  fifteen,  he  will  never  be  justly  called  a 
man  of  letters.  I  am  endeavouring  to  repair  the  damages  of  my 
education,  and  have  a  person  to  teach  me  Latin  and  the  mathe- 
matics ;  two  hours  in  a  day,  for  four  or  five  months,  this  may 
help  me  a  little. 

If  I  were  to  judge  of  a  country  by  those  just  come  out  of 
it,  Ireland  will  never  be  agreeable  to  me.  You  are  in  the  midst 
and  see  the  brightest  and  most  shining  in  other  than  in  a 
soldiers  character.  I  wish  it  were  more  pleasing  to  you  than 
you  mention,  because  probably  you  will  stay  there  some  time. 

The  men  here  are  civil,  designing  and  treacherous  with 
their  immediate  interests  always  in  view ;  they  pursue  trade 
with  warmth  and  necessary  merchantile  spirit,  arising  from  the 
baseness  of  their  other  qualifications.  The  women,  coarse,  cold 
and  cunning,  for  ever  enquiring  after  men's  circumstances. 
They  make  that  the  standard  of  their  good  breeding.  You  may 
imagine  it  would  not  be  difficult  for  me  to  be  pretty  well 
received  here,  if  I  took  the  pains,  having  some  of  the  advantages 
necessary  to  recommend  me  to  their  favour  :  but  .... 

My  dear  Rickson, 

Your  affectionate  friend, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  Captain  Rickson^  of  Col.  Lascelle's  Regiment. 

To  be  left  at  Lucas's  Coffee  House,  Dublin,  Ireland. 

We  need  have  less  surprise  at  Wolfe's  impressions  of  Glasgow  if 
we  compare  them  with  those  of  other  visitors,  his  contemporaries, 
or  even  with  the  animated  picture  which  Sir  Walter  Scott  has 
painted  for  us  in  Rob  Roy.  But  Glasgow  then  and  probably 
now   improves    upon    acquaintance.     In    1749,    the    inhabitants 


MANKIND'S   HIGHEST  JOY  95 

numbered  scarce  above  20,000.  Here  we  see,  in  spite  of  whatever 
uncongenial  surroundings,  the  Major  attacking  his  mathematics  and 
Latin  with  a  will.  When  his  father  wrote  him  a  letter  of  fatherly- 
counsel  apropos  of  a  military  career  as  the  veteran  had  found  it, 
we  find  Wolfe  responding  in  a  somewhat  formal  and  "literary" 
vein.  He  moralizes  on  warfare,  and  the  "  highest  joy  "  he  describes 
he  himself  was  to  taste  for  one  fleeting  moment. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow,  April  1th,  1749. 
Dear  Sir, — That  variety  incident  to  a  military  life  gives  our 
profession  some  advantages  over  those  of  a  more  even  and 
consistent  nature.  We  have  all  our  passions  and  affections 
roused  and  exercised,  many  of  which  must  have  wanted  their 
proper  employment,  had  not  suitable  occasions  obliged  us  to 
exert  them.  Few  men  are  acquainted  with  the  degrees  of 
their  own  courage  till  danger  prove  them  and  are  seldom  justly 
informed  how  far  the  love  of  honour  or  dread  of  shame  are 
superior  to  the  love  of  life.  This  is  a  knowledge  to  be  best 
acquired  in  an  army ;  our  actions  are  there  in  presence  of  the 
world,  to  be  freely  censured  or  approved.  Constancy  of  temper, 
patience  and  all  the  virtues  necessary  to  make  us  suflPer  with  a 
good  grace  are  likewise  parts  of  our  character,  and,  as  you  know, 
frequently  called  in  to  carry  us  through  unusual  difficulties. 
What  moderation  and  humility  must  he  be  possessed  of  that 
bears  the  good  fortune  of  a  successful  war  with  tolerable  modesty 
and  humility,  and  he  js  very  excellent  in  his  nature  who  triumphs 
without  insolence.  \a  battle  gained  is,  I  believe,  the  highest  joy 
mankind  is  capable  dT  receiving,  to  him  who  commands  ;  and  his 
merit  must  be  equal  to  his  success  if  it  works  no  change  to  his 
disadvantage.  Lastly,  a  defeat  is  a  trial  of  human  resolution, 
and  to  labour  under  the  mortification  of  being  surpassed,  and 
live  to  see  the  fatal  consequences  that  may  follow  to  one's 
country,  is  a  situation  next  too  damnable.  But  I  make  my  \ 
introduction  a  little  too  long ;  however,  as  you  started  the 
subject,  and  gave  me  the  first  hints,  you  won't  be  displeased. 

Your  letter  and  several  others  mention  Cornwallis's  new 
officers.  He  will  certainly  get  the  regiment  in  America,  and  I 
shall  as  certainly  have  a  Lieutenant-Colonel  put  in.  In  this 
great  demand  for  employment,  Lord  George's  interest,  or  even 
the  Duke's  own,  will  hardly  be  sufficient  to  keep  out  a  new  man. 
The  Ministry  must  manage  their  people,  and  secure  them  by 


96    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

obligations.  Let  it  be  as  it  will,  the  sooner  'tis  determined  the 
greater  share  I  shall  have  of  freedom,  and  be  more  at  liberty  to 
visit  you  in  the  south. 

I  have  this  morning  received  a  letter  from  my  mother,  by 
which  it  appears  how  great  your  consideration  is  for  your  poor 
Major,  and  how  much  I'm  obliged  to  you  for  your  ready  assist- 
ance. I  promise  you  these  sums  are  not  employed  but  in  a 
manner  that  you  yourself  might  approve ;  and  I  should  be 
ashamed  ever  to  ask,  but  to  such  purposes  as  becomes  your  son  ; 
and  that  I  should  be  somewhat  cramped  in  a  sort  of  generous 
notions  that  are  part  of  my  inheritance,  you  should  not  hear 
from  me  on  this  subject ;  for,  though  I  had  rather  be  indebted 
to  you  for  any  kind  of  aid  than  to  any  man  alive,  yet  the  name 
of  a  debt  is  more  than  enough  to  make  it  disagreeable  in  the 
affair  of  money  only.     My  duty  to  my  mother,  etc. 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  old  General  had  enclosed  a  draft  for  a  substantial  sum, 
which  came  in  very  handy  to  pay  for  the  Major's  tuition  and 
other  fees.  He  was  living  in  the  quietest  manner  possible  in  his 
lodgings  in  Camlachie.     From  thence  he  writes  to  his  mother. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  lUh  April,  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — It  was  very  kind  in  you,  as  soon  as  you 
knew  my  distress ;  your  second  letter  does  not  in  the  least 
diminish  the  merit  of  your  first  and  I'm  as  much  obliged  to  my 
father  and  you  as  if  I  had  more  immediately  received  your 
assistance. 

At  the  same  time  I  can't  help  saying  that  the  fruits  of  my 
own  labour  are  perhaps  the  most  proper  supplies,  and  if  I  should 
go  any  length  beyond  the  usual  bonds,  'tis  just  I  should  pay  for 
it.  If  ever  my  opinion  differs  from  my  father's,  'tis  certain  to 
be  in  my  own  favour.  I  don't  believe  he  ever  thought  better  of 
me  that  I  do  of  myself.  The  same  reasoning  may  serve  for  the 
greater  part  of  mankind,  so  that  it  does  not  say  that  I  am  right 
when  opposed  to  his  sentiments. 

The  General  says  that  a  lump  of  wealth  will  be  of  more  service 
to  me  altogether  when  he  is  gone  (sure  he  does  not  mean  soon  !) 
than  part  would  be  now.  For  undoubtedly  he  must  observe  that, 
I  am  as  likely  to  make  a  good  use  of  it  now  as  I  can  possibly  be 
at  any   other  time,  and   much  more  certain,  for  who  can  tell 


ATTENDANCE   AT   KIRK  97 

which  of  the  two  shall  survive  ?  But  suppose  I  should  stay  a 
few  years  behind  would  it  not  be  highly  pleasing  to  him  that 
the  person  he  intends  for  his  successor  should  in  his  presence 
and  under  his  eye,  flourish  while  he  lives  and  give  him  some 
convincing  reason  to  hope  that  what  he  has  been  at  pains  to 
collect  would  not  be  idly  or  basely  employed  ?  Would  he  not 
receive  some  additional  satisfaction  when  the  very  principles  he 
has  taken  care  to  instil  are  generously  exercised  for  his  credit 
more  than  mine  ? 

I  can  produce  a  ready  excuse  for  not  attending  to  the  miseries 
of  those  that  might  look  up  to  me  for  relief  when  I  declare  an 
inability  to  help  them,  and  that  the  common  expenses  of  my 
office  at  least  require  the  revenue.  But  this  is  enough,  and 
more  than  I  intended,  since  for  twenty-two,  a  Major's  pay  is 
pretty  well ;  however,  without  any  extravagance,  I  could  easily 
find  use  for  more. 

My  father  excepted  no  one  alive  wishes  you  so  truly  well  as  I 
do,  however  vainly  they  may  endeavour  to  profess  it.  Mrs. 
In  wood's  care  of  you  during  your  illness  was  very  obliging  ;  she 
deserves  everything  of  me  for  her  love  to  the  house.  I  wish  the 
boxes  ten  times  more  beautiful  on  her  account.  She  shall  beat 
me  at  chess,  scream  in  a  coach  unreproved,  or  do  anything  she 
pleases  when  I  am  with  her.  Don't  send  any  money  by  the 
sergeant ;  you'll  find  employment  for  it. 

They  prosecute  the  wearers  of  cambric  with  great  severity  in 
this  place,  so  that  I  stand  in  need  of  some  change  of  stocks  (not 
Bank  Stocks  nor  South  Sea).  If  you  can  get  me  a  dozen  made 
of  whatever  sort  you  please,  I  shaU  thank  you.  This  place  is 
very  far  from  being  so  disagreeable  as  it  appeared  at  first.  The 
ladies  are  very  civil  and  in  great  numbers,  and  they  are  not  so 
desperately  afraid  of  a  soldier  as  formerly.  The  inhabitants  still 
retain  all  the  religion  they  ever  had,  I  dare  say,  with  rather  less 
outward  ostentation  and  mockery  of  devotion,  for  which  they  are 
justly  remarkable. 

My  uncle  Wat  has  sent  a  drummer  to  the  regiment ;  he  is  not 
a  beauty.  I  wish  Lord  George  don't  dismiss  him.  The  Major 
writ  to  me  about  him  ;  I  consented,  provided  his  figure  was 
tolerable. 

I  do  several  things  in  my  character  of  commanding  officer 
which  I  should  never  think  of  in  any  other ;  for  instance,  I'm 
every  Sunday  at  the  Kirk,  an  example  justly  to  be  admired.  I 
would  not  lose  two  hours  of  a  day  if  it  did  not  answer  some  end. 


98    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

When  I  say  "  lose  two  hours,""  I  must  explain  to  you  that  the 
generality  of  Scotch  preachers  are  excessive  blockheads,  so  truly 
and  obstinately  dull,  that  they  seem  to  shut  out  knowledge  at 
every  entrance.  They  are  not  like  our  good  folks.  Ours  are 
priests,  and  though  friends  to  venaison,  they  are  friends  to 
sense. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

With  regard  to  attendance  at  divine  service,  there  is  a  regi- 
mental minute,  July  1,  1749  :  "  Lord  George  Sackville  hopes 
that  decency  and  a  proper  sense  of  duty  will  for  the  future  pre- 
vail upon  the  officers  to  attend  upon  Divine  Service,  and  that  the 
commanding  officer  of  the  regiment  may  not  be  obliged  to  order 
them  to  church  with  their  respective  companies."  By  that  time 
Lord  George  Sackville  was  in  Glasgow  on  a  visit  to  his  regiment, 
although  the  spirit  of  the  order  doubtless  emanated  from  his 
friend  the  acting  Lieutenant-Colonel.  Of  this  remarkable  man, 
Lord  George  Sackville,  whose  character  appears  such  an  enigma  to 
the  eighteenth-century  historians,  something  will  be  said  later. 
Meanwhile,  on  April  28,  Wolfe  writes  to  his  father.  It  may  be 
mentioned  that  the  journey  he  speaks  of  was  made  in  the  new 
stage  coach  between  Glasgow  and  Edinburgh,  the  starting  of 
which  enterprise  was  regarded  as  an  important  event. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow,  2Sth  April ,  O.S.,  1749. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  within  this  hour  returned  from  Edinburgh, 
where  I  was  a  necessary  person  in  a  most  disagreable  office.  I 
went  there  to  bury  a  captain  of  the  Regiment.  He  died  of  a 
spotted  fever  at  his  return  from  Shetland,  that  same  Milbourne, 
whose  fortitude  and  good  understanding,  preserved  our  four 
Companies,  lived  to  see  them  safe  and  then  left  them  for  ever. 
The  Regiment  has  lost  an  excellent  officer  and  can  as  little  spare 
a  Captain  of  his  abilities  at  a  time  like  this,  as  may  be  imagined. 
He  was  our  paymaster.  His  long  absence  from  the  corps  has 
thrown  the  accounts  into  confusion  and  there  are  few  men  like 
him  capable  of  setting  'em  to  rights. 

I  saw  several  letters  from  London  which  spoke  of  our  affairs. 
My  old  master  ^  has  had  ill-natured  things  said  of  him.     He  is 

1  General  Huske. 


ASSISTS   AT   A  FIRE  99 

strong  to  bear  up   against  those  sort  of  attacks,  and  if  they 
put  him  upon  the  staff,  will  laugh  at  their  sage  counsel. 

The  embarkations  are  in  great  forwardness,  I  hear,  it  is  to 
be  feared  that  the  Mediterranean  corps  will  suffer  by  desertion. 
The  soldiers  have  a  strange  abhorrence  of  such  strict  confinement, 
and  the  unusual  heats  they  expect  to  find  in  that  climate.  I 
hope  your  men  will  behave  steadily  upon  this  as  upon  many  other 
occasions,  and  confirm  everything  by  their  submission  that  can 
be  expected  from  such  resolutions. 

About  1500  men  will  be  ordered  this  summer  to  the  roads  ; 
our  battalion  furnishes  their  proportion.  Would  you  think  that 
they  intend  to  strike  off  a  little  extraordinary  pay,  hitherto 
allowed  to  the  subaltern  officers  upon  that  duty.  Such 
scandalous  ill-judged  parsimony  was  never  practised  in  any  army 
before  and  never  can  be  without  creating  uneasiness  and  dislike. 
These  poor  gentlemen  are  slaves  to  the  service,  and  hardly  get 
bread  from  it  and  should  they  be  cut  off*  from  this  little  reason- 
able advantage  ?  My  duty  to  my  mother. 
I  am,  dear  Sir. 

Your  most  dutiful  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  was  about  this  time  that  300  men  of  the  regiment  officered 
by  two  captains  and  six  subalterns  were  told  off"  for  road-building 
from  the  Pass  of  Leny  to  the  head  of  Loch  Em.  From  Wolfe's 
regimental  orders  we  learn  that  "  the  Privates  were  to  be  provided 
with  coarse  shirts  for  working  in,  but  check  ones  were  on  no  account 
to  be  bought.""  Checks  were  too  suggestive  of  plaid.  He  had 
not  been  long  in  Glasgow  before  a  terrible  conflagration  occurred 
on  the  south  side  of  the  Clyde,  and  of  regular  town  police  and  fire- 
men there  being  none,  the  duties  of  such  fell  upon  the  King's 
troops.  "  Major  Wolfe  and  the  other  officers  of  Lord  George 
Sackville's  regiment,"  we  read  in  The  Courant,  "  were  present  all  the 
time,  and  were  of  singular  service  by  placing  guards  upon  the 
bridge  and  at  all  the  avenues  to  keep  off"  the  crowd  and  prevent 
their  stealing  the  effects  belonging  to  the  poor  sufferers.  Many  of 
the  soldiers  exerted  themselves  in  preventing  the  flames  and  in 
saving  people's  lives.""  One  hundred  and  fifty  families  were  rendered 
homeless  by  this  fire  at  the  Gorbals.  A  little  later,  on  the  21st  of 
May,  Glasgow  was  flung  into  great  excitement  by  a  riot  resulting 
from  the  exploit  of  a  party  of  body-snatchers.  It  seems  that 
about  the  time  that  Wolfe  arrived  in  Glasgow  a  party  of  body- 

H  2 


100    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

snatchers  carried  a  corpse  to  the  college.  Whereupon  a  mob  was 
incited  to  attack  the  building,  smash  the  windows  and  commit  other 
outrages.  The  ringleaders  of  the  riot  were  apprehended,  tried,  and 
two  only  found  guilty.  These  were  sentenced  to  be  whipped 
through  the  town  and  banished  for  life.  The  populace  were  out- 
raged at  the  severity  of  this  sentence,  and  another  riot  was 
threatened.     When  Wolfe  wrote  he  was  far  from  well. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  21  May,  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — ^This  is  the  most  lazy  and  indolent  disorder 
I  have  ever  been  oppressed  with ;  '  tis  pain  to  undertake  the 
slightest  business ;  and  what  used  to  give  me  pleasure  in  the 
work,  is  now  tedious  and  disagreeable.  I  should  hardly  imagine 
it,  if  I  did  not  really  feel  it  myself,  yet  the  very  writing  a  few 
words,  though  to  the  person  I  always  loved  to  write  to,  is  now  a 
trouble  to  me.  I  must  drive  off  this  heaviness  by  some  means  or 
other,  and  not  be  thus  uneasy  to  myself,  when  everything  about 
me  looks  gay  and  pleasant. 

The  sergeant  brought  me  the  little  bundles,  just  as  you  had 
given  them  into  his  hands ;  they  came  very  seasonably  and  I 
thank  you  much  for  the  relief. 

Mr.  Gedde  too,  has  furnished  me  with  what  his  shop  affords  ; 
I  can't  say  they  come  at  so  easy  a  rate,  as  some  other  things,  but 
whoever  deals  with  him,  I  find  must  pay  well  to  be  well  served. 
We  expected  a  great  tumult,  and  some  mischief  in  a  day  or  two, 
at  the  punishment  of  two  men  concerned  in  the  mob  ;  but  they 
have  prevented  all  that  by  escaping  out  of  prison.  It  has  saved 
me  a  great  deal  of  trouble,  though  it  would  have  been  for  the 
future  peace  of  the  place,  if  these  offenders  had  received  what  the 
law  intended  them.  I'm  afraid  the  magistrates  will  suffer  in  the 
opinion  of  their  superiors ;  though  I  can't  say  it  appears  that 
they  connived  at  the  prisoners'  flight :  yet  their  fears  of  their 
being  rescued  and  their  timorous  behaviour  throughout  the 
whole  of  this  affair,  will  not  fail  to  create  suspicions  to  their  pre- 
•  judice.  Present  my  duty  to  my  father. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Greenwich,  England. 

In  his  next  letter  he  adverts  to  the  impending  regimental  changes. 


FILIAL   GRATITUDE  101 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow,  July  10,  1749. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  but  one  way  of  making  you  any  acknow- 
ledgements, and  that  if  by  endeavouring  to  deserve  your  esteem. 
A  number  of  words  and  sentences  ever  so  well  put  together 
cannot  equal  a  good  action,  those  are  only  to  be  paid  in  their 
kind  ;  and  though  I  should  take  the  greatest  pains  to  tell  you 
how  much  I  think  myself  obliged  to  you,  you  would  be  better 
pleased  to  hear  that  I  did  my  share  of  duty  as  it  should  be  done  ; 
and  that  every  kindness  I  received  from  you  was  felt  by  the 
honest  and  the  good  ;  that  every  addition  of  circumstance  was 
employed  as  you  yourself  would  wish,  and  that  the  same  principles 
and  integrity  that  have  hitherto  guided  your  actions  are  through 
you,  the  rule  of  mine.  All  this  would  be  pleasing  to  hear,  and 
you  have  taken  one  more  step  to  bring  it  about ;  '  tis  now  in  my 
power  to  be  both  generous  and  just,  and  I  have  an  opportunity 
of  owning  with  great  pleasure  that  both  the  inclination  and 
ability  are  from  you.  Lord  George  Sackville  and  Cornwallis  are 
two  people  whom  no  sordid  or  vicious  man  can  succeed  without 
appearing  in  dismal  colours,  and  a  regiment  accustomed  to 
genteel  commanders,  are  so  many  censors  to  disapprove  and 
condemn  a  different  behaviour ;  not  but  certain  allowances  are 
to  be  made  between  men  of  high  rank  and  fortune,  and  those  of 
inferior  degree. 

I  laugh  to  think  of  Mrs.  Fanny's  ^  globes  and  spheres  rolling 
upon  the  ground,  her  drawing  pens  and  brushes  dispersed,  her 
shells  in  disorder,  and  a  goblet  broken  in  the  fray.  I  hope  it  was 
her  effects  and  not  her  person  that  these  rash  robbers  aimed  at ; 
sure  they  have  not  run  away  with  her  ?  sweet  soul !  What  a 
panic  she  is  always  in  at  the  sight  of  a  rude  man  ! 

General  Churchill  is  so  much  out  of  order  that  the  Dragoon 
reviews  are  put  off  for  a  week  in  hopes  of  his  recovery.  My 
duty  to  my  mother. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  Lieut.  Genl.  Wolfe, 

at  Greenwich  in  Kent,  Sovth  Britain. 

His  arduous  regimental  duties,  added  to  his  closet  studies,  were 
probably  a  little  wearing  to  his  health.     Yet  he  was  not  wholly 

^  Miss  Frances  Thompson. 


102    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

unsociable,  as  local  tradition  shows  him  to  have  been  a  frequent 
visitor  at  "Shawfield,"  the  residence  of  Colonel  Macdowall,  Mr. 
Barclay's  of  Capelrig,  and  others  of  the  neighbourhood. 

To  HIS  MOTHEE. 

July  19,  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — I  have  your  two  letters  before  me  and  by 
them  I  perceive  myself  much  in  your  debt.  'Tis  only  an  addition 
to  the  large  account  that  stands  against  me,  and  I'm  afraid  will 
for  ever  stand,  for  there  always  has  been  and  is  likely  to  be,  a 
vast  advantage  on  your  side.  There's  one  article  favours  me, 
which  is,  that  the  pleasure  you  feel  when  you  do  good  offices 
almost  pays  the  doing,  and  if  I  am  not  quite  as  grateful  as  I 
should  be,  it  will  never  be  in  my  power  to  prevent  your  inclina- 
tion. The  worst  on  my  side  will  only  vary  the  object,  the  act  is 
still  the  same,  and  the  better  for  being  well  appointed. 

I  have  already  explained  the  reason  of  my  former  wishes  about 
going  to  England,  so,  for  this  summer,  my  hopes  are  vanished. 
In  the  winter  Lord  G.  Sackville  offers  to  get  me  leave  for  three 
months  and  was  so  kind  to  propose  it  himself.  I  have  not  con- 
sented even  to  his  asking ;  it  shall  be  as  my  father  pleases  and 
as  he  thinks  it  more  or  less  for  my  advantage.  Lord  George 
talks  of  the  necessity  of  keeping  up  my  present  acquaintance 
amongst  the  heads  of  our  trade  and  procuring  new  ones  that 
may  be  of  use.  I  have  no  turn  that  way.  If  Fm  really  wanted 
'tis  well  to  be  prepared.  I  have  not  a  mean  opinion  of  my 
friends.  My  expectations  from  them  are  not  great  enough  to 
be  troublesome,  and  I  don't  think  they'll  forget  in  one  year  those 
that  have  been  honoured  with  their  friendship  for  five  or  six. 
My  father  will  see  what  is  to  be  done.  I  have  a  real  dependence 
on  him  and  can  confide  in  his  advice ;  when  he  thinks  fit  to  call 
me  to  him,  I'm  ready  to  come. 

It  is  not  easy  to  describe  myself  in  my  present  state.  If  I 
say  I'm  thinner,  you'll  imagine  me  a  shadow,  or  a  skeleton  in 
motion.  In  short  I'm  everything  but  what  the  surgeons  call  a 
subject  for  anatomy;  as  far  as  muscles,  bones,  and  the  larger 
vessels  can  serve  their  purpose,  they  have  a  clear  view  of  them  in 
me,  distinct  from  fat  or  fleshy  impediment. 

It  is  great  grief  to  me  that  your  god-child  ^  is  not  in  the  right 
way.  She  should  see  more  of  the  world,  and  then  common 
objects  would  not  strike  so  forcibly.     I  wish  her  well  for  the 

1  Miss  Streton. 


SACKVILLE   ARRIVES  103 

friendship  that  has  for  so  long  subsisted  between  the  two  families 
and  because  her  well-being  will  be  a  great  satisfaction  to  her 
good  parents. 

My  Maid  of  Honour  (for  I  think  she  should  somehow  or 
other  be  distinguished)  you  say  was  not  of  the  party  you  met, 
nor  do  I  believe,  had  she  been  there,  that  you  wou'd  have  thought 
ill  of  her  companions.  Such  superiority  has  virtue  and  good 
sense  over  their  opposites.  It  is  the  greatest  mistake  to  place  a 
young  woman  of  any  condition  in  that  office;  "'tis  but  the 
genteeler  way  to  wickedness,  and  in  truth,  with  submission  to 
General  Mordaunfs  notions,  his  niece  need  not  be  for  ever  in 
public  to  be  taken  notice  of,  admired  and  married. 

If  Mr.  Swinden  desires  it,  I  will  write  to  him,  but  he  often 
hears  by  you,  and  cannot  doubt  of  my  esteem  for  him.  Writing 
to  men  of  business  about  trifles  is  stealing  so  much  necessary 
time  from  them. 

I  reckon  myself  the  General's  pensioner  from  the  1st  July 
1749.  Your  letter  is  of  the  30th  June.  Every  three  months  is 
most  convenient  for  me.  Do  you  know  if  he  pays  as  he  receives 
in  advance,  or  do  we  buy  in  in  October  ? 

Fm  surprised  to  hear  you  complain  of  heat.  We  suffer  no 
inconvenience  from  it  in  this  country.  On  the  contrary,  it  has 
been  so  excessive  cold  both  yesterday  and  to-day,  that  I  am  now 
before  a  large  fire,  and  cannot  well  stay  in  my  room  without  it. 

I  am  just  now  going  to  write  to  the  famous  Barbour  for  a 

gun ;  the  game  here  is  a  temptation  to  shoot  and  this  sort  of 

exercise,  moderately  used,  is  wholesome  enough.     Mr.  Fisher^ 

pays  the  armourer  as  he  has  already  done  the  sadler.     My  duty 

to  my  Father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
Glasgow,  July  19th,  1749. 

I  blush  to  think  what  difficulties  you'll  have  to  read  my 
letter. 

The  arrival  of  the  Colonel  of  the  Regiment  relieved  Wolfe  of 
his  duties  as  commander.  Lord  George  Sackville,  take  him  all 
in  all,  is  one  of  the  greatest  enigmas  of  eighteenth-century  history. 
"  He  had,"  says  Wraxall,  "  a  frame  of  body  naturally  robust,  and 
a  vigorous  constitution  secured  him  almost  uninterrupted  health. 

^  The  army  agent. 


104     LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

In  his  person,  which  rose  to  near  six  feet,  he  was  muscular  and 
capable  of  enduring  much  bodily  as  well  as  mental  fatigue. 
Though  his  features  were  strongly  pronounced  and  saturnine,  yet 
considered  together  as  a  whole  their  effect  by  no  means  displeased. 
An  air  of  high  birth  and  dignity,  illuminated  by  strong  sense, 
pervaded  every  lineament  of  his  face.""  He  was  while  on  first 
acquaintance  proudly  reserved,  yet  "no  man  in  private  society 
unbent  himself  more  or  manifested  less  self-importance.""  The 
Duchess  of  Dorset,  his  mother,  had  been  Maid  of  Honour  to 
Queen  Anne,  and  his  father,  the  Duke,  remembered  William  III. 
On  the  whole.  Lord  George,  as  his  panegyrist  avers,  owed  more  to 
nature  than  cultivation,  although  given  a  good  education  in  the 
college  at  Dublin.  How  he  arose  from  the  terrible  infamy  of 
Minden  to  place  and  power  a  second  time,  surviving  serenely  a 
second  disgrace,  is  an  unparalleled  story  belonging  to  the  next 
reign. 

To  Wolfe  Sackville  was  kindness  itself.  He  saw  that  the 
major's  health  had  suffered  by  the  northern  climate,  as  well  as  by 
his  occupations.  The  weather  that  summer  had  been  unusually 
cold  and  wet,  so  that  there  were  few  days,  even  in  July,  when  he 
could  dispense  with  a  fire  in  his  bedroom.  Lord  George  proposed, 
however,  that  Wolfe  should  remain  in  Glasgow  until  winter,  and 
then  have  three  months'*  leave,  which  he  could  not  better  employ, 
in  the  Colonel's  opinion,  than  in  keeping  up  acquaintance  with 
"  the  heads  of  our  trade."  Wire-pulling  and  personal  importunities 
were  very  important  factors  in  an  officer's  advancement  in  those 
days. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow,  2'nd  Atigtcst,  1749. 

Dear  Sir, — You  do  for  me  every  day  much  more  than  I  can 
justly  think  myself  entitled  to,  though  by  your  care  and  anxiety 
I  ought  to  entertain  favourable  notions  of  myself  and  increase 
in  proportion  to  your  boimty  and  liberality,  the  natural  opinion 
each  man  has  of  some  merit  in  him  ;  whenever  I  find  you  engag'd 
for  me  either  in  the  business  of  advance  or  otherwise,  I  cannot 
but  applaud  myself  for  being  the  object  of  so  many  good 
intentions  as  I  have  always  observed  you  very  fastidious  in  the 
distribution  of  your  favours.  I  had  writ  to  my  mother  to  tell 
her  that  she  is  too  kind  to  be  easily  forgot  and  that  it  is  not  in 
my  power  (if  I  was  wholly  made  up  of  ingratitude)  to  remove 
from  my  mind  the  reflection,  at  least  of  the  many  instances  she 


LORD   GEORGE    SACKVILLE 
From  the  portrait  by  Sir  Joshua  Rfynolds 


t 


REGIMENTAL   CHANGES  105 

has  given  of  her  affection.  I  can't  promise  to  repay  her  in  any 
shape,  for  I  can't  foresee  the  possibility ;  but  the  recollection 
must  remain  with  me  as  long  as  I  have  the  faculty  of  thinking. 
If  Ld.  G.  Sackville's  father  is  again  Lord  Lieutenant  of  Ireland, 
youll  see  our  colonel  a  very  considerable  man  in  that  country ; 
we  are  to  lose  him  without  the  hopes  of  finding  his  equal. 

It  is  almost  sure  that  we  will  have  Hamilton's  Dragoons, 
and  unless  Col.  Conway  ^  falls  to  our  share  among  the  many  that 
solicit,  none  will  be  found  that  can  in  any  manner  make  amends 
for  the  loss  of  him.  I  have  seen  a  letter  this  day  which  very 
nearly  confirms  his  success  to  him  and  our  unhappiness  in  that 
success,  not  but  in  justice  we  should  rejoice  at  any  good  that 
befalls  him,  but  that  excellency  is  not  found  in  our  natures,  and 
as  sufferers,  we  complain.  For  my  particular,  I  may  expect  his 
assistance  whether  he  is  with  the  Regiment  or  not ;  he  has  given 
me  such  strong  marks  of  esteem,  that  there  can  be  little  doubt. 
He  goes  to  Ireland  in  14  days  without  any  thought  of  returning 
into  this  country,  for  some  years. 

My  shirts  are  come  and  fit  me  every  way  except  that  the 
ruffles  make  me  a  greater  beau  than  I  desire  to  be  in  this  part 
of  the  world.  I'm  almost  out  of  conceit  with  Scotland ;  the 
season  has  been  so  unusually  bad  that  it  has  been  a  summer  lost 
to  us.  Such  rains  and  winds  as  you  might  expect  where  you 
are  in  the  month  of  November.  I  had  very  near  relapsed  for 
want  of  sun,  and  it  is  more  or  less  cloudy  every  day.  I  am 
neither  better  nor  worse  in  health. 

I  heartily  wish  you  both  well  and  am,  dear  Sir,  Your  Most 
obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

My  duty  to  my  Mother. 

Eleven  days  later  he  wrote  to  his  mother.     The  summer  of 
1749  would  appear  to  have  been  a  disastrous  one  in  the  north. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  13  August  J  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — Any  disorder  that  we  have  been  accustomed 
to  for  any  length  of  time,  tho'  not  to  be  perfectly  cured,  often 
admits  of  some  alleviation  from  our  acquaintance  with  it  and 

1  Conway,  the  friend  of  Walpole  and  afterwards  Field  Marshal,  had  just 
been  made  Colonel  of  the  29th  Foot. 


106     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

the  remedies  presented ;  but  the  uncommon  manner  in  which 
yours  has  seized  you  makes  me  very  apprehensive  that  the 
complaint  is  quite  new  and  deserves  your  utmost  attention.^ 

The  elements  seemed  to  have  conspired  against  the  face  of 
the  earth,  first  by  the  destruction  of  every  kind  of  fruit,  and 
now  by  endangering  the  harvest.  There  is  not  in  the  country 
a  field  of  any  sort  of  corn  cut  down.  If  the  hand  of  the  Lord 
be  not  upon  them,  they  are  in  a  terrible  latitude. 

This  is  Sunday,  and  we  are  just  come  from  Church.  I  have 
observed  your  instructions  so  religiously,  that  rather  than  avoid 
the  word,  I  got  the  reputation  of  a  very  good  Presbyterian,  by 
frequenting  the  Kirk  of  Scotland  till  our  chaplain  appeared. 
I'm  now  come  back  to  the  old  faith,  and  stick  close  to  our 
communion.  The  example  is  so  necessary,  that  I  think  it  a 
duty  to  comply  were  that  the  only  reason,  as,  in  truth,  it 
is  not. 

To-morrow  Lord  George  Sackville  goes  away,  and  I  take 
upon  me  the  difficult  and  troublesome  employment  of  a  com- 
mander. You  can't  conceive  how  difficult  a  thing  it  is  to  keep 
the  passions  within  bounds,  when  authority  and  immaturity  go 
together ;  to  endeavour  at  a  character  that  has  every  opposition 
from  within,  and  that  the  very  condition  of  the  blood  is  a 
sufficient  obstacle  to.  Fancy  you  see  me,  that  must  do  justice 
to  good  and  bad ;  reward  and  punish  with  an  equal  unbiassed 
hand ;  one  that  is  to  reconcile  the  severity  of  discipline  with  the 
dictates  of  humanity;  one  that  must  study  the  tempers  and 
dispositions  of  many  men,  in  order  to  make  their  situation  easy 
and  agreeable  to  them,  and  should  endeavour  to  oblige  all 
without  partiality,  a  mark  set  up  for  everybody  to  observe  and 
judge  of;  and  last  of  all,  suppose  me  employed  in  discouraging 
vice  and  recommending  the  reverse  at  the  turbulent  age  of 
twenty-three,  when  it  is  possible  I  may  have  as  great  a  propensity 
that  way  as  any  of  the  men  that  I  converse  with ! 

My  duty  to  my  father. 

I  am,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

At  last  the  weather  improved :  and  so  had  Wolfe's  learning, 
so  that  he  promises  himself  some  recreation. 

1  What  an  age  of  ailmeuts,  ignorance,  quacks,  and  nostrums  it  was  !  Mrs. 
Wolfe  had  sciatica,  which  as  time  went  on  hecame  acute.  In  the  mean  time 
she  was  treated  for  several  diseases. 


MATHEMATICAL  STUDIES         107 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  8^A  September^  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — I  don't  know  how  the  mathematics  may 
assist  the  judgment,  but  they  have  a  great  tendency  to  make 
men  dull.  I,  who  am  far  from  being  sprightly  even  in  my 
gaiety,  am  the  very  reverse  of  it  at  this  time.  Fm  heavier  in 
discourse,  longer  at  a  letter,  less  quick  at  apprehension,  and 
carry  all  the  appearances  of  stupidity  to  so  great  a  height,  that 
in  a  little  time  they  won't  be  known  from  the  reality ;  and  all 
this  to  find  out  the  use  and  property  of  a  crooked  line,  which, 
when  discovered  serves  me  no  more  than  a  straight  one,  does 
not  make  me  a  joy  more  useful  or  more  entertaining,  but,  on 
the  contrary,  adds  to  the  weight  that  nature  has  laid  upon  the 
brain,  and  blunts  the  organs. 

I  have  been  writing  congratulatory  letters  to  General  Mor- 
daunt  and  Colonel  Rich ;  they  are  both  quick-sighted  men ;  I 
wish  they  don't  pass  censure  upon  my  labours,  and  criticize  my 
style  of  writ  (as  'tis  termed  here) ;  but  I  could  not  deny  myself 
the  pleasure  of  assuring  the  General  how  glad  I  was  of  his 
success,  and  the  Colonel  that  he  had  the  fairest  title  to  the  gift, 
large  as  it  is.^ 

I  have  got  a  gun  from  Mr.  Barbour ;  now  I  propose  to  amuse 
myself  a  little  in  that  way,  and  in  a  few  weeks  I  shall  hunt. 
The  regiment  keeps  hounds,  and  my  horses  are  pretty  good. 

I  forgot  in  my  last  to  speak  of  Captain  Flight ;  I  know  him 
quite  well,  and  can  assure  those  that  inquire  after  him  that 
there  is  nowhere  a  man  of  a  better  disposition.  He  is  greatly 
esteemed  among  us,  and  by  all  his  acquaintance ;  'twas  the 
highest  injustice  of  me  not  to  mention  him  before,  as  I  could 
not  in  truth  say  anything  that  was  not  to  his  advantage.  My 
duty  to  my  father.     I  am, 

My  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

A   Lieutenant-Colonelcy   was   now  in  sight.     Comwallis  not 
returning  to  the  regiment,  Wolfe  writes  to  his  father — 

IQth  September,  1749. 
Dear  Sir, — Lord  Tyrawley  said  humorously,  being  asked  if 
the  King  spoke  to  him,  and  how  he  received  his  lordship,  that 

^  Mordaunt  had  been  appointed  to  the  10th  Dragoons,  and  Rich  succeeded 
Barrell  as  Colonel  of  the  Fourth. 


108     LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

"  few  words  are  best  among  friends.""  The  Duke  has  not  kept 
you  in  suspense,  from  whence  we  may  conclude — according  to 
Lord  Tyrawley — that  our  affairs  are  well  there.  I  hope  his 
Royal  Highness  will  make  such  a  choice  as  must  oblige  us  to 
own  his  justice.  If  he  is  an  older  officer,  it  is  to  be  supposed  he 
is  a  better,  and  then  there  can  be  no  complaints  on  our  side. 
I  have  attained  to  such  a  height  of  indifference  and  diffidence 
together,  that  a  denial  sits  very  easy  upon  me.  Frecjuent 
refusals  might  in  time  alienate  my  affections  from  the  service, 
especially  if  many  years  are  wasted  in  exile,  with  no  very 
entertaining  objects  to  employ  the  thoughts  upon. 

The  harvest  throughout  all  the  west  of  Scotland  is  utterly 
destroyed  by  the  great  rains  that  have  fallen.  They  have  a  sad 
prospect  for  the  winter,  neither  meal  nor  seed ;  this  destruction 
must  bring  a  great  dearth  and  the  want  will  occasion  vast  riot 
and  confusion  particularly  in  this  city. 

Arthur's  ^  greatest  suffering  at  Gibraltar  seems  to  be  the  want 
of  claret.  I  hope  I  have  hit  upon  a  method  to  send  them  some 
supply. 

I  cannot  make  an  end  of  my  letter  without  assuring  you  that 
the  want  of  success  in  anything  you  undertake  for  me  will  never 
lessen  the  obligation  and  that  one  great  reason  why  I  w^ould 
wish  better  fortune  is  that  I  am  persuaded  you  take  so  large  a 
part  in  what  concerns  me  that  my  prosperity  would  give  you 
pleasure  and  anything  that  can  increase  your  satisfaction  here 
will  add  greatly  to  mine.  My  love  to  my  mother.  I  am,  dear 
Sir,  etc. 

J.  Wolfe. 

We  can  see  in  his  letters  at  this  time  the  ardent,  aspiring 
young  Major  eating  his  heart  out  in  Scotland. 

To    HIS    MOTHEE. 

Glasgow,  ^nd  October j  1749. 
Dear  Madam, — It  will  not  be  possible  in  my  circumstances 
to  get  leave  of  absence  for  four  months ;  we  can  expect  no  such 
indulgence.  A  less  time  is  not  worth  asking  for,  and  therefore 
I'll  pass  the  winter  at  Perth.  I  must  hunt  and  shoot  for  exer- 
cise, and  read  for  entertainment.  After  Christmas,  when  the 
company  comes  into  Edinburgh,  and  the  place  is  in  all  its 

^  Loftus. 


AU   REVOIR  TO   GLASGOW        109 

perfection  of  dirt  and  gaiety,  111  repair  thither,  and  stay  a 
fortnight  or  three  weeks.  It  will  help  to  dispel  melancholy, 
and  I  have  been  told  that  a  certain  smell  is  a  remedy  for  the 
vapours  ;  there  I  can't  fail  to  meet  the  cure. 

This  day  fortnight  we  leave  this  town,  and  till  we  return  to 
it  cannot  hope  to  find  so  good  quarters.  According  to  the  rota- 
tion of  the  troops  in  Scotland,  the  sixth  year  brings  us  back  : 
but  'tis  a  dreadful  interval,  a  little  life  to  a  military  man  ;  and 
for  my  particular,  so  far  from  being  in  love  with  the  country, 
that  I'd  go  to  the  Rhine,  or  Italy,  nay,  serve  a  campaign  against 
the  Turks,  rather  than  continue  in  it  the  time  I  have  mentioned, 
and  that,  too,  in  the  very  blooming  season  of  our  days.  It  is 
my  misfortune  to  miss  the  improving  hour,  and  to  degenerate 
instead  of  brightening. 

Few  of  my  companions  surpass  me  in  common  knowledge, 
but  most  of  them  in  vice.  This  is  a  truth  that  I  should  blush 
to  relate  to  one  that  had  not  aU  my  confidence,  lest  it  be 
thought  to  proceed  either  from  insolence  or  vanity :  but  I  think 
you  don't  understand  it  so.  I  dread  their  habits  and  behaviour, 
and  forced  to  an  eternal  watch  upon  myself,  that  I  may  avoid 
the  very  manner  which  I  most  condemn  in  them.  Young  men 
should  have  some  object  constantly  in  their  aim,  some  shining 
character  to  direct  them.  'Tis  a  disadvantage  to  be  first  at 
an  imperfect  age  ;  either  we  become  enamoured  with  ourselves, 
seeing  nothing  superior,  or  fall  into  the  degree  of  our  associates.^ 

I'll  stop  here  that  you  might  not  think  me  very  uneasy.  As 
I  now  am,  it  is  possible  that  I  may  be  better  pleased,  but  my 
duty  and  a  natural  indolence  of  temper  make  it  less  irksome  ; 
and  then  a  pretty  constant  employment  helps  to  get  me  through, 
and  secures  me  from  excess  of  debauch.  That,  too,  is  enough 
prevented  by  the  office  of  a  commander.  My  duty  to  my  father. 
I  am, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Mrs.  Hooker's  ^  is  a  terrible  disorder.  I  know  nothing  that 
can  alleviate  her  affliction  but  kindness  and  assiduity  from  her 
friends.  I'm  sure  she  may  expect  everything  of  that  kind 
from  you. 

^  "  Our  acting  commander  here  is  a  Paragon.  He  neither  drinks,  curses, 
gamhles,  nor  runs  after  women.  So  we  make  him  our  pattern."  Letter 
from  Captain  Macrae,  Glasgow,  November  16,  1749. 

2  His  mother's  neighbour  at  Greenwich. 


110    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF    WOLFE 

Wolfe  had  enjoyed  no  holiday  all  that  year.  He  left  Glasgow 
with  regret,  and  on  October  16  began  the  march  to  Perth.  On 
the  arrival  of  the  20th  Regiment  at  Perth  they  learnt  that  his 
friend,  Lord  Bury,  the  same  who  had  carried  the  tidings  of 
Culloden  to  London,  had  been  appointed  colonel.  He  soon  had 
letters  from  Lord  Bury  regarding  the  regiment  which  demanded 
careful  attention.  But  his  replies  have  apparently  not  been 
preserved.^ 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  16  December,  1749. 

Dear  Madam, — You  give  the  best  reason  in  the  world  for 
continuing  in  the  country  so  late  as  you  did.  Wherever  my 
father  and  you  have  your  health  best,  there  I  would  wish  you 
most,  and  as  Greenwich  seems  to  agree  with  both,  the  best  thing 
you  can  do  is  to  make  it  more  agreeable  by  changing  from  a  bad 
house,  to  a  good  one,  from  a  low  situation  to  a  high  one,  and  as 
near  the  park  as  possible.  Do  not  be  in  any  pain  about  me. 
When  I  am  well  all  places  will  produce  something  to  entertain, 
and  when  otherwise,  it  matters  little  where  one  is,  the  less 
trouble  to  our  friends  the  better.  You  need  not  hurry  your- 
selves about  military  promotions,  for  I  take  them  to  be  at  an 
entire  stand  for  some  time.  When  these  things  were  to  be  had, 
I  got  my  share,  and  (my  necessary  confinements  excepted)  have 
reason  to  be  well  enough  satisfied  with  what  has  happened. 

1  am  mighty  glad  Mrs.  Hoskins'  disorder  does  not  turn  out 
so  dangerous  as  was  apprehended.  Her  sweetness  of  temper  and 
social  disposition  makes  her  too  valuable  not  to  fear  her  loss. 
The  Duke  of  Montagu'*s  death  will  be  of  advantage  to  the 
young  lady,2  since  his  conversation  (in  your  opinion)  was  not 
fitted  for  her  tender  ear.  There  is  one  kind  of  converse  and  dis- 
course with  the  men  that  is  of  great  service  to  the  other  sex, 
and  another  as  injurious,  but  it  would  take  too  much  time  to 
distinguish  the  two.  However,  it  obliges  me  to  observe  to  you 
that  the  women  in  this  country  partake  very  much  of  society 
with  men,  and  by  that  means,  gain  a  certain  freedom  of  behaviour, 
uncommon  in  England,  but  which  is  nevertheless  of  great  use  to 
preserve  them  from  the  bad  consequences  of  sudden  surprise  or 
novelty,  and  is  a  real  protection  to  their  virtue,  though  at  times 
one  would  imagine  that  their  easiness  in  some  particulars  lead 

^  I  have  made  inquiries  of  the  Keppel  family,  but  without  result. 

2  Miss  Lawson. 


CHRISTMAS   AT   PERTH  111 

directly  to  the  contrary.^  'Tis  a  usual  thing  for  the  matrons  to 
sit  at  table  with  the  men  till  very  late  and  concur  in  everything 
but  the  actual  debauchery,  and  as  the  men  warm  at  wine,  they 
speak  openly  enough  to  give  offence  with  us. 

This  fresh  disappointment  in  love  has  changed  my  natural 
disposition  to  such  a  degree,  that  I  believe  it  is  now  possible 
I  might  prevail  upon  myself  not  to  refuse  twenty  or  thirty 
thousand  pounds,  if  properly  offered  1  Rage  and  despair  do 
not  commonly  produce  such  reasonable  effects  ;  nor  are  they 
the  instruments  to  make  a  man's  fortune  by  but  in  particular 
cases. 

We  have  had  the  finest  autumn  season  imaginable ;  it  has 
made  us  some  amends  for  the  bad  summer.  The  month  of 
November,  so  fatal  to  our  countrymen,  far  surpassed  anything 
that  could  be  expected. 

You  won't  want  diversion  in  London,  if  you  will  only  think 
that  it  is  of  use  to  partake  of  them.  The  great  secret  of 
happiness  in  life  is  to  employ  every  moment  of  our  time,  which 
can  only  be  done  with  the  help  of  great  variety.  My  duty  to 
the  General. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

James  Wolfe. 

Very  different  was  Wolfe's  Christmas  at  Perth  to  that  of  the 
previous  year  in  Old  Burlington  Street.  The  new  year  was  already 
imder  way  when  he  next  writes  to  his  mother.  In  this  letter  the 
reference  to  the  young  lady  of  Croydon  deserves  a  word  of  ex- 
planation. It  has  already  been  seen  that  her  son's  attachment  to 
Miss  Lawson  was  by  no  means  approved  of  by  Mrs.  Wolfe,  and 
her  obj  ection  she  prudently  based  on  the  grounds  of  inadequate 
fortune.  She  and  the  General  had  other  views  for  their  son.  They 
had  "  an  eye  upon  a  fortune  of  d£*30,000."  The  accompaniment  of 
this  very  useful  dowry  was  Miss  Hoskins  of  Croydon. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  January  \Qth,  1749. 
Dear    Madam, — Since    Lord     George    Sackville    left    the 
regiment  I  have  changed   my  way  of  life.     When  we  were  at 
Glasgow  together,  I  had  taken  that  opportunity  to  acquire  a  few 

^  This  observation  has  since  frequently  been  made  by  observers  of  American 
life  and  manners. 


112    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

things  that  I  was  before  ignorant  of,  and  in  which  I  might 
expect  assistance  from  some  of  the  people  in  the  College.  I  was 
even  so  far  engaged  that  I  did  not  give  up  such  a  share  of  time 
and  attention  as  was  due  to  his  Lordship :  now  all  that  is 
vanished,  and  I  am  entirely  at  leisure  to  prosecute  such  enter- 
tainments as  I  find  of  use  to  my  health,  and  agreeable  to  my 
taste ;  and,  as  the  latter  is  generally  subservient  to  the  first,  I 
have  improved  and  strengthened  my  constitution  beyond  what 
I  have  hitherto  known. 

Your  letter  confirmed  some  unsteady  thought  I  had  had  of 
providing  a  little  coarse  linen  ;  and  I  made  the  purchase  the  day 
after  I  received  it.  Seven  shirts  at  three  shilling  a  yard  will  be 
durable  wear.  Yes,  I  shall  be  very  rich  whenever  we  meet :  I 
have  the  talent  for  heaping  up  wealth  ;  and  the  temptation  must 
be  very  great  when  I  am  persuaded  to  part  with  it.  My 
Lieutenant  Partridge  came  by  here  a  few  days  since,  and 
delivered  Miss  Hoskins's  compliments.  He  is  her  neighbour  at 
Croydon :  he  tells  me  he  thinks  her  a  complete  woman,  and 
advises  me  (as  a  friend)  to  make  up  to  her.  This  is  his  counsel, 
and  the  manner  in  which  he  offered  it.  But  he  did  not  know 
Miss  Lawson,  he  confessed  that.  I  thank  you  for  remembering 
my  birthday.  I  had  almost  forgot  it  myself,  and  was  in  dispute 
about  my  own  age,  whether  twenty-three  or  twenty-four.  I 
believe  the  former.  My  duty  to  my  Father.  I  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 

in  Old  Burlington  Street,  London. 

One  more  than  ever  regrets  the  loss  of  the  Wolfe-Bury  corre- 
spondence after  reading  the  first  paragraph  of  the  next  letter  because 
of  the  light  it  would  shed  on  Highland  affairs  in  the  middle  of  the 
century. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  January  31,  1760. 

Dear  Sir, — My  Colonel  [Lord  Bury]  and  I  have  a  very  exact 
correspondence.  He  is  extremely  bent  upon  procuring  all  the 
knowledge  of  regimental  affairs  that  the  distance  between  us  will 
allow  of;  in  order,  I  suppose,  to  make  such  alterations  and 
amendments  as  seem  requisite,  and  to  be  the  better  prepared 
against    he    comes    amongst    us.     I    answer   his    letters   very 


HIS   COUSIN   GOLDSMITH  113 

punctually,  and  endeavour  all  in  my  power  to  satisfy  him  in  such 
particulars  as  are  properly  within  my  sphere  ;  confining,  however, 
my  judgement  of  men  and  things  to  what  is  purely  military,  and 
belonging  to  my  office.  He  can  give  you  weekly  intelligence  as 
far  as  the  assurance  of  a  letter  can  go,  whenever  you  are  so  good 
as  to  make  enquiry  after  me. 

I  have  heard  very  lately  from  Gibraltar :  both  my  friends, 
Loftus  and  Donnellan,  seem  to  detest  their  situation,  and  are  a 
little  displeased  with  their  Governor.  They  complain  (particularly 
Donnellan)  of  being  too  strictly  confined  and  of  too  much  duty. 
These  are  real  grievances  at  the  end  of  seven  campaigns,  when 
men  very  naturally  desire  some  respite  from  the  fatigue  of  a 
soldier's  life ;  especially  as  they  see  almost  all  their  brethren  in 
ease  and  quiet.  I  am  afraid  General  Bland  is  not  quite  so  well- 
bred  and  so  polite  as  might  be  wished  ;  he  has  a  roughness  about 
him  that  breaks  out  sometimes  into  ill-manners,  when  he  is  in 
any  authority;  though  Sir  J.  Whiteford's  personal  merit  or 
ability  is  not  of  the  most  eminent  kind,  and  although  there  is 
another  objection  in  some  opinions  to  his  success  ;  I  can't  help 
being  pleased  that  the  King  has  taken  the  first  opportunity  to 
give  the  officers  of  that  regiment  a  mark  of  his  favour ;  as  the 
corps  in  general  do  deserve  well  of  their  country,  having  given 
notable  proofs  of  courage  and  fidelity  throughout  the  war. 

I  am  glad  that  my  cousin  Goldsmith  has  at  last  got  a 
company,  I  suppose  it  is  so,  and  I  daresay  he  is  obliged  to  you 
for  some  assistance  or  if  you  have  not  done  him  service,  I  am 
sure  there  was  no  want  of  inclination  in  you  to  do  it.  All  your 
relations  will,  I  am  persuaded  agree,  that,  if  they  have  deserved 
well  of  you,  they  have  not  found  you  backward.  I  wish  you 
both  much  health  and  am,  dear  sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  Lieut.  Gen.  Wolfe, 
Old  Burlington  St. 

From  the  foregoing  letter  it  will  be  inferred  that  old  General 
Wolfe  had  some  influence  at  head-quarters  and  was  very  benevolent 
towards  his  Irish  relations.  Captain  Edward  Goldsmith,  of  the 
31st  (Otway's  Regiment),  was  about  Wolfe's  age,  a  first  cousin 
of  Oliver  Goldsmith  the  poet,  and  a  godson  of  old  General  Wolfe. 

It  was  not  to  be  supposed  that  with  his  disposition  Wolfe  would 
yield  up  his  fair  charmer  without  a  struggle.     Filial  piety  was  one 


114    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

thing,  and  some  youths  now-a-days  might  think  Wolfe  carried  it  to 
an  extravagant  extent,  but  constancy  to  his  mistress  was  another. 
Mrs.  Wolfe  having  forbidden  her  son  even  to  think  of  an  alliance 
with  Miss  Lawson,  seems  to  have  regarded  the  affair  as  settled. 
She  even  ventured  to  say  that  she  had  seen  the  lady,  who  she 
averred  was  certainly  about  to  be  married  to  somebody  else. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Qth  February,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — If  I  have  at  any  time  omitted  writing  it  has 
never  been  either  to  avert  it  as  a  trouble  or  an  intentional  neglect 
of  the  two  people  in  the  world  that  I  have  the  greatest  love  and 
regard  for,  and  the  highest  confidence  in,  but,  I  believe,  the 
want  of  something  new  may  have  stretched  the  interval  a  little 
longer  than  it  ought  to  be.  We  are  here  so  totally  barren  of 
everything  that  is  amusing  to  ourselves  or  capable  of  diverting 
others,  that  we  are  actually  almost  at  a  loss  for  ideas.  However, 
if  you  can  be  satisfied  with  a  line  or  two  I  have  no  sort  of  excuse 
left. 

I  believe  you'll  do  me  the  justice  to  own  that  a  gentle 
admonition  from  you  has  all  the  effect  of  the  severest  rebuke. 
I  have  as  great  a  desire  to  make  a  return  for  your  tenderness  and 
friendship  as  I  have  to  pay  reverence  to  your  parental  authority. 
In  short,  I  have  a  lasting  remembrance  of  what  I  owe  you  both 
in  duty  and  gratitude  and  am  always  concerned  when  you  have 
any  reason  to  think  me  forgetful. 

Your  opinion  of  Miss  Lawson  has  inflamed  me  anew,  and 
you  have  exactly  hit  upon  that  part  of  her  perfection  (her 
behaviour)  that  worked  the  strongest  upon  me ;  for  I  have  seen 
a  hundred  handsome  women  before,  and  never  was  in  love  with 
one.  How  could  you  tell  me  that  you  liked  her,  and  at  the 
same  time  say  her  illness  prevents  her  wedding  ?  I  don't  think 
you  believe  she  ever  touched  me  at  all,  or  you  could  never  speak 
with  so  much  indifference  of  her  ill-health  and  marriage, — the 
only  things  in  relation  to  that  lady  that  could  give  me  the  least 
uneasiness,  except  that  I  thought  you  were  adverse  to  her ;  and 
even  that  you  have  taken  care  to  clear  up  by  your  approbation 
of  her  manners  and  person,  and  by  that  means  have  left  me 
absolutely  destitute  of  relief. 

I  think  I  told  you  in  one  of  my  letters  that  Roland  ^  was  ill. 
1  His  old  servant. 


MISS   LAWSON  115 

He  has  been  in  so  terrible  a  condition  for  four  months  that  I 
have  hardly  had  any  service  from  him.  At  length  we  thought 
it  would  be  better  to  get  him  into  Chelsea,  which  I  have 
endeavoured  to  do  to  the  utmost  of  my  power.  I  did  not 
mention  it  to  my  father,  as  I  knew  he  does  not  love  to  be 
troubled  with  these  sort  of  things  ;  nor  did  I  tell  Roland  to 
wait  upon  you,  concluding  he  would  do  that  of  course.  But  I 
perceive  the  poor  fellow's  modesty  is  greater  than  .  .  .  Captain 
Wilson  has  undertaken  to  do  his  business,  and  he  will  tell  you 
where  the  honest  old  servant  is  to  be  found.  'Twas  death  to  me 
to  part  with  him.  It  has  made  me  vastly  inconvenienced  though 
accidentally  I  hired  a  tolerable  English  groom  who  does  pretty 
well. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  good  lady,  Wolfe*'s  mother,  finding  that  her  own  authority 
was  not  sufficient  to  dismiss  all  thoughts  of  Miss  Lawson  from  his 
mind,  brought  the  GeneraPs  weight  to  bear  on  the  business.  The 
old  veteran  though  at  heart  a  doting  father  wielded  a  blunt  and 
heavy  pen.  He  was  no  such  suave  and  persuasive  letter-writer  as 
his  next-door  neighbour  at  Blackheath,  the  Earl  of  Chesterfield. 
"  Enough  of  this  philandering,"  "  this  obstinacy  and  perseverence 
in  error,"'"'  were  phrases  which  he  probably  calculated  would  make 
the  parental  meaning  clear. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  Feb.  l^th,  1750. 

Dear  Sir, — Though  I  have  frequently  given  you  occasion  to 
blame  either  my  neglects  or  levity,  I  am  not  however  conscious 
of  ever  having  intended  to  give  you  any  uneasiness  by  obstinacy, 
or  perseverance  in  an  error ;  the  high  opinion  I  have  all  along 
entertained  of  your  just  sense  of  things,  has  always  forced  me  to 
a  proper  submission  to  your  will,  and  obliges  me  to  acknowledge 
those  actions  to  be  actually  wrong,  when  you  think  them  so. 
Besides,  I  am  so  convinced  of  your  sincerity  and  secure  of  your 
friendship  that  your  advice  cannot  fail  of  its  due  weight,  nor 
could  I  without  the  highest  presumption  differ  from  your 
sentiments  in  any  of  the  concerns  of  life.  As  what  I  have  said  is 
the  exact  truth,  I  mention  it  by  way  of  making  a  distinction 
between  that  part  of  my  behaviour  that  is  guided  by  reflection, 
and  such  steps  as  are  the  consequence  of  youth  and  inexperience, 

I  2 


116    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

or,  that  have  no  rule  to  go  by  and  are  the  pure  effects  of  chance ; 
but  the  main  reason  is  to  induce  you  not  to  look  upon  any  slight 
omission,  or  inadvertancy  as  done  with  design  to  offend  or 
displease ;  so  far  am  I  from  any  such  intention,  that  my  greatest 
satisfaction  is  the  means  of  contributing  in  some  measure  to 
your  happiness. 

Lord  Bury  promises  to  be  with  us  in  a  month,  by  that  time 
the  hunting  or  shooting  season  will  be  over,  and  we  shall  have 
little  else  to  do  than  to  march  and  wheel.  My  duty  to  my 
mother. 

I  am,  dear  sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  Lieut.  Gen.  Wolfe^ 

Old  Burlington  Street. 

He  still  attempts  to  propitiate  both  parents  for  his  presump- 
tion in  continuing  in  love. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  March  9,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — I  hope  your  long  silence  does  not  proceed 
from  the  continuance  of  your  indisposition,  I  had  rather  it 
should  have  any  other  cause,  though  ever  so  unpleasant  to 
myself;  I  desire  you  to  think  that  I  have  undergone  sufficient 
punishment,  and  judge,  by  the  pleasure  it  gives  me  to  hear 
from  you.  I'm  sure  you  would  not  wish  that  the  penalty  should 
exceed  the  crime. 

Because  it  is  probable  that  old  Roland  has  before  now  thought 
of  his  duty  and  has  been  to  pay  his  humble  respects  to  you, 
perhaps  some  of  your  servants  may  know  where  the  enclosed 
letter  can  reach  him.  I  have  therefore  taken  the  freedom  to 
put  it  within  this  frank,  as  the  readiest  and  least  expensive 
conveyance.  He  writes  me  for  two  suits  of  clothing,  which  he 
cannot  but  know  are  with  the  company ;  my  old  Lieutenant 
promised  to  deliver  them  whenever  they  are  called  for,  or  send 
them  by  some  favourable  opportunity  to  London.  People  of 
Roland's  stamp  have  their  views  so  extremely  narrow  and  are 
withal  so  very  diffident,  that  they  can  hardly  bring  themselves 
to  think  there  is  common  honesty  in  man.  'Tis,  I  suppose, 
because  they  meet  with  so  much  roguery  amongst  one  another. 


PROMOTION   IN   SIGHT  117 

There  are  in  the  neighbourhood  of  this  place,  some  fine  anti- 
scorbutic waters ;  I  will  try  whether  they  won''t  be  of  use  to 
remove  a  complaint  in  me;  you  may  remember  I  have  an 
irruption  upon  both  hands  in  the  summer,  which  I  take  to  be 
the  scurvy. 

If  as  we  are  told  the  two  battalions  are  preparing  to  relieve 
part  of  the  Mediterranean,  my  friends  ^  in  the  King's  Regiment 
will  be  very  fortunate  and  very  happy ;  their  having  been  at 
Gibraltar  must  recommend  these  more  moderate  climates ;  and 
make  them  truly  sensible  of  sweet  variety  and  liberty.  My  duty 
to  my  father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Naturally    he    was    most    anxious    about     his    long-awaited 
lieutenant-colonelcy. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  23  JlfarcA/ 1760. 

Dear  Sir, — The  words  of  Lord  Bury''s  two  last  letters  seem 
calculated  to  make  me  imagine  his  lordship  wishes  me  success,  at 
the  same  time  that  they  express  his  difference  of  it.  I  am  not  able 
to  extract  enough  of  his  real  opinion,  to  determine  whether  I  am, 
or  am  not,  to  be  his  Lieutenant-Colonel.  He  says  indeed,  that  the 
Duke  is  our  friend,  but  does  not  affirm  that  he  won't  be  prevailed 
upon,  to  give  up  this  point.  Lord  George  Sackville  sent  me  the 
first  information  of  the  vacancy  with  the  strongest  assurances 
of  his  aid  and  service.  As  I  know  he  is  very  sincere,  I  rely 
chiefly  upon  him.  Whichever  way  the  business  turns,  I  shall 
be  glad  to  know  from  you  who  the  persons  are  that  seem  the 
most  to  concern  themselves  in  it ;  that  I  may  thank  them  for 
their  endeavours  whether  they  succeed  or  not. 

I  attribute  my  not  having  heard  from  you  these  three  last 
posts  to  your  earnest  desire  of  sending  such  an  account  as  I  may 
depend  upon,  knowing  what  an  enemy  you  are  to  the  uneasy 
state  of  uncertainty  and  how  backward  to  increase  our  doubts.  I 
beg  my  duty  to  my  mother  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

^  Loftus  and  Donnellan. 


118    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

PS. — There  has  been  nothing  uncommon  felt  in  the  North, 
nor  more  shocking  than  usual. 
This  postscript  refers  to   the  London   earthquakes  of  1750. 
Even  as  he  penned  the  next  letter  the  news  of  his  appointment 
arrived. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  March  29th,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — 'Tis  a  vast  accession  to  my  successes  in  life 
that  it  never  fails  to  give  my  father  and  you  as  much  satisfaction 
as  I  myself  am  capable  of  receiving.  That  I  have  the  happiness 
to  be  so  far  in  your  esteem  and  opinion  as  firmly  to  unite  our 
interests  I  cannot  doubt,  especially  as  every  day  I  see  both  in 
greater  anxiety  for  what  regards  me  alone,  than  for  the  highest 
of  your  own  concerns.  This  is  what  increases  and  improves  my 
good  fortune,  by  making  you  partakers  of  it.  The  post  to- 
morrow will  bring  me  some  positive  account.  As  yet.  Lord 
Bury  has  only  said  that  the  King  has  consented  to  the  Duke''s 
recommendation.  Former  examples  have  taught  me  not  to  think 
the  business  done  till  Fm  sure  of  it.  The  Duke  himself  has 
been  sometimes  disappointed  when  he  has  thought  every  obstacle 
removed. 

If  the  cause  of  the  earthquakes  are  natural  (which  I  suppose 
they  are),  and  to  be  accounted  for,  they  are  in  the  right  who 
remove  at  a  distance  from  the  danger.  There  may  be  more 
moisture  in  some  parts  of  the  island  than  in  others,  and  con- 
sequently less  to  be  feared  in  those  parts.  Though  these  shocks 
are  very  unusual  in  England,  and  of  course  very  terrible,  I 
don't  hear  of  much  mischief  following.  It  is  to  be  hoped  it  will 
have  a  good  effect.  Most  people  imagine  these  tremblings  super- 
natural, and  such  consciences  as  are  under  the  heaviest  loads  of 
iniquity  will  tremble  in  proportion  to  that  weight,  and  to  the 
convulsions  of  the  earth. 

I  left  my  letter  open  till  the  post  came  in.  Everything  is 
confirmed  without  possibility  of  repeal.  Fm  very  sensible  of 
the  greatness  of  the  favour  done  me,  and  receive  it  with  tolerable 
humility.  This  you  would  have  a  further  proof  of  had  you  been 
by  when  the  first  advice  came.  I  try  to  prevent  its  working  too 
strongly  upon  me,  that  I  may  not  disappoint  the  givers  and 
those  that  rejoice. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 
J.  Wolfe. 


A    LIEUTENANT-COLONEL  119 

At  twenty-three,  therefore,  our  hero  found  himself  a  Lieutenant- 
Colonel,  a  rank  his  father  held  at  twice  his  age,  and  to  which 
neither  his  grandfather  nor  his  great-grandfather,  though  sterling 
soldiers,  had  attained  in  the  army.  Yet  none  who  knew  him 
grudged  him  this  success,  to  celebrate  which  the  officers  of  the 
20th  gave  a  dinner,  for  which  their  "  paragon  "  modestly  returned 
his  thanks  and  was  a  greater  favourite  with  the  regiment  than  ever. 


VII 

THE   UNHAPPY   LOVER 

There  is  little  doubt  Wolfe  owed  his  Lieutenant-Colonelcy 
directly  to  the  recommendation  of  Lord  George  Sackville,  who 
was  then  on  intimate  terms  with  the  Duke  of  Cumberland, 
Commander-in-Chief.  But  when  so  many  persons  of  influence 
had  perceived  his  merit  and  urged  his  claims,  promotion  could 
not  have  been  long  delayed. 

To  HIS  Fathee. 

Perth,  Qth  April,  1750. 

Dear  Sir, — The  Duke's  behaviour  to  you  in  the  business  of 
my  promotion  was  right  noble.  As  he  made  you  very  happy 
in  the  main  point,  your  concession  to  my  mother,  by  satisfying 
the  desire  she  had  of  sending  me  the  earliest  intelligence,  was  in 
imitation  of  the  example  given  us  by  that  Prince, — that  we  are 
not  only  to  enjoy  the  good  that  has  fallen  to  us,  but  make  other 
people  partakers  of  it. 

The  Duke  has  employed  his  power  and  influence  upon  this 
occasion  where,  at  least,  it  is  sure  to  be  remembered.  There  are 
not  many  opportunities  in  life,  and  the  prospect,  as  things  stand 
at  present,  very  distant ;  but  if  ever  he  commands  the  army  of 
this  nation  in  its  defence,  I  shall  wish  to  be  with  him,  and  glad 
to  contribute  something  to  his  success.  This  is  the  only  return 
that  can  justly  be  made  from  me  to  him,  and  all,  I  believe,  he 
would  expect.  I  think  myself  much  obliged  to  Lord  George 
Sackville,  and  have  writ  him  the  strongest  assurances  of  it. 
What  he  said  some  time  ago  to  his  Royal  Highness  left,  no 
doubt,  a  favourable  impression,  and  forwarded  this  succession. 
I  did  not  forget  to  tell  Colonel  Napier  ^  that  some  thanks  are 
certainly  due  to  him.  The  last  three  years  of  the  war  I  was 
immediately  about  his  person,  and  without  his  friendship  and 
approbation  things  could  not  have  gone  on  so  smoothly. 

From  a  great  deal  of  little  trifling  business  I  have  fallen  into 
a  state  of  inactivity.  If  it  were  possible,  while  I  am  capable  of 
improvement,  and  young  enough  to  apply,  I  could  wish  to  be 

1  William,  Sixth  Lord  Napier. 
120 


CONTINENTAL   PLANS  121 

allowed  an  interval  to  be  bestowed  upon  myself ;  a  year  and  a 
half  or  two  years,  would  wear  off  the  rough,  unpolished  coat, 
and  give  a  gloss  to  all  my  future  actions.  It  may  be  reasonably 
said  that  I  have  not  for  seven  years  past  been  at  liberty  to 
acquire  the  common  accomplishments,  much  less  to  embellish  or 
refine.  Fm  persuaded  you  would  have  thought  it  necessary,  had 
not  the  war  prevented  your  intentions,  to  have  sent  me  from 
England  to  some  place  proper  for  the  purpose.  I  hope  you 
still  think  it  not  too  late,  and  this  the  fairest  opportunity. 
Turin  seems  the  best  calculated  to  answer  my  ends.  I  shall  be 
glad  to  have  your  opinion,  and  to  know  whether  you  approve 
my  choice  and  inclination,  and  what  steps  should  be  taken  for 
effecting  it. 

I  have  the  pleasure  of  being  known  to  Captain  Wilkinson. 
He  is  a  man  of  uncommon  good  character.  I  shall  take 
particular  care  to  show  him  all  the  civility  in  my  power.  It  is 
always  a  very  unfeigned  grief  to  me  when  you  labour  under  any 
affliction,  but  I  am  pleased  to  see  that  you  expect  some  relief 
from  the  purer  air.  Let  me  only  desire  you  use  all  the  advan- 
tages of  your  situation  to  procure  health.  My  duty  to  my 
mother. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc. 

This  was  followed  the  same  month  by  a  further  letter,  in  which 
we  find  a  reference  to  Jeffrey  Amherst,  his  future  chief  in  America. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  21th  April,  1760. 

Dear  Sir, — Tho'  I  did  not  answer  your  letter  immedi- 
ately, 'twas  not  because  I  had  not  complied  with  your  request, 
for  by  the  return  of  that  same  post  I  writ  a  letter  to  Amherst 
and  said  everything  that  I  thought  could  engage  him  to  use  his 
influence  with  Sir  John  Ligonier,  and  from  my  knowledge  of 
him  do  not  in  the  least  doubt  but  he"*ll  do  his  part  to  help 
forward  Mrs.  Scott's  in  so  interesting  a  point  as  that  of  a  provision 
for  her  son.  I  took  great  care  to  distinguish  that  the  application 
was  from  me  to  him,  and  not  from  you  to  the  General,  because 
I  perceive  you  don't  desire  to  stand  obliged  to  him,  as  if  you 
did,  you  are  undoubtedly  the  properest  person  to  address  one  of 
Sir  John's  character  and  dignity.  If  I  myself  had  any  right  to 
ask  a  favour  of  General  Ligonier,  I  should  have  done  it  some 
time  ago  (in  a  like  case)  for  a  young  gentleman  of  a  good  race. 


122    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

near  Glasgow,  who  has  in  all  shapes  far  superior  pretensions  to 
Mr.  Scott,  at  least  1  imagine  so.  My  Colonel  L.  Bury  I  find 
does  not  at  all  care  that  I  should  be  absent  for  any  considerable 
time,  and  so  far  from  consenting  to  my  going  abroad  he  thinks 
it  quite  right  that  I  should  continue  in  Scotland  till  the  begin- 
ning of  November;  tho"'  this  is  by  no  means  correspondent 
with  my  way  of  thinking.  I  am  forced  to  submit,  having  really 
no  choice.  I  can  ask  nothing  of  the  Duke  but  by  his  will  he 
ask  a  favour  of  another,  that  himself  would  refuse,  so  that  I 
must  lay  aside  the  thought  of  any  improvement  of  this  kind, 
which,  to  speak  the  truth,  I  am  already  almost  too  old  for.  I 
am,  nevertheless,  still  determined  to  employ  some  few  years  of 
my  life  in  the  real  business  of  an  officer,  and  not  sacrifice  all  my 
time  to  idling,  as  our  trifling  soldierships.  Some  of  the  nations 
of  Europe  will  soon  give  me  an  opportunity  to  put  this  resolution 
in  practice. 

Admiral  Boscawen''s  return  brings  back  my  friend  Brett.     I 
will  write  him  my  sentiments  upon  his  arrival  in  a  few  days  and 
recommend  them  to  my  mother's  care.     I  wish  you  both  much 
health  and  peace,  and  am, 
Dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

James  Wolfe. 

I  have  this  day  answered  a  letter  from  my  uncle  Wolfe. 
He  says  he  has  writ  to  you  about  my  journey  to  Turin.  He 
certainly  means  well ;  but  I  know  it  to  be  unnecessary  and 
superfluous.  What  is  to  be  done  for  my  advantage  you  were 
never  backward  to  comply  with,  nor  need  you  any  second 
application  when  the  first  appears  reasonable,  of  which  nobody 
will  dispute  your  right  of  judging. 

Whether  or  no  Wolfe  was  to  go  abroad  he  would  certainly  not 
go  for  the  present. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  ^rd  May,  1760. 

Dear  Madam, — As  I  told  my  father  in  my  last  letter  to 
him  that  my  stay  here  for  some  months  longer  is  determined,  I 
have  only  to  add  that  I  regret  the  impossibility  of  any  improve- 
ment in  the  way  I  proposed  which  you  both  so  readily  and 
cheerfully  consented  to,  and  am  not  a  little  concerned  that  it  is 


HIS   AUNT'S   MARRIAGE  123 

not  in  my  power  to  pass  some  part  of  the  next  summer  at  Green- 
wich, where  I  might  expect  as  much  happiness  as  the  conversation 
of  my  best  friends  and  so  dehghtful  a  spot  could  procure  me. 
Instead  of  this  pleasing  prospect  my  confinement  is  increased  to 
six  months  more.  By  that  time  I  shall  be  so  heartily  tired 
and  in  such  a  hurry  to  get  to  you  that  if  I  stop  anywhere  it 
will  be  at  my  Uncle  Tin''s,  and  entirely  in  obedience  to  your 
commands. 

The  goat  whey  is  said  to  have  all  the  virtues  mentioned  in 
your  letter  for  correcting  the  bad  juices.  I  shall  make  trial 
of  its  efficacy  in  the  beginning  of  June,  and  may  reasonably 
expect  some  relief,  but  nothing  would  do  me  so  much  good 
or  agree  so  well  with  my  constitution  as  the  air  of  Kent.  It 
blows  nowhere  clearer  or  purer  than  upon  Shuter"'s  Hill  or  in 
the  Park. 

My  father''s  ill-health  cannot  but  be  a  great  concern  to  you, 
and  is  no  less  so  to  me.  The  obstinacy  of  the  disorder  seems  to 
baffle  advice  or  care.  Nothing  is  so  likely  to  assist  him  and 
alleviate  the  pains  as  your  tenderness  for  him.  I  have  only  one 
thing  to  say,  which  is,  that  as  my  father  has  already  made  as 
competent  a  provision  for  us  both  as  is  necessary  for  our  well- 
being,  no  future  views  for  you  or  me  can  any  longer  be  looked 
upon  as  sufficient  reasons  to  debar  him  any  enjoyment  which  it 
is  possible  to  procure  him  in  this  life ;  so  don't  wait  for  me  to 
take  such  resolutions  as  you  think  most  agreeable  to  this 
inclination. 

It  gives  me  vast  pleasure  that  Mr.  Swinden  is  in  so  fair  a 
way  of  obtaining  the  character  of  a  father;  his  understanding 
and  good  temper  fit  him  for  the  education  of  children,  and  Mrs. 
Swinden  is  herself  so  fine  a  woman  that  my  friend  has  a  right 
to  expect  proper  objects  for  his  care.  I  can't  imagine  anything 
imperfect  can  be  produced  from  so  complete  a  woman. 

Miss  Frances  Thompson's  marriage  ^  is  as  pleasant  a  thing  as 
I  have  heard  of  a  good  while  past.  I  suppose  the  man's  a  philo- 
sopher and  has  taken  her  to  try  how  much  he  can  bear  and 
what  mankind  with  the  assistance  of  reason  and   learning  is 

1  Mrs.  Wolfe's  sister,  Frances,  married  Stephen  Abthorpe,  D.D.,  Fellow 
of  Eton,  step-brother  of  William  Cole.  The  latter  speaks  of  his  nieces 
Frances  and  Anne  Abthorpe  as  first  cousins  to  Wolfe.  Mrs.  Abthorpe  died  in 
1755. — Wright.  Mrs.  Abthorpe  was  very  eccentric  and  soon  developed  a 
fatal  religious  mania  from  hearing  Whitefield  preach. 


124    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

capable  of  suffering.     I  hope,  as  a  grammarian,  he  does  not 
depend  upon  his  rhetoric  to  keep  her  in  good  humour. 

In  duty  to  my  father,  etc. 

The  Captain  Trapaud  mentioned  in  the  letter  ensuing  was 
afterwards  to  become  the  Governor  of  Fort  Augustus  and  the 
host  of  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  29  May,  1750. 

Dear  Sir, — Though  I  can  say  little  more  to  you  than  that 
I  have  no  complaint,  yet  as  you  are  so  good  to  say  it  is  agree- 
able to  you  to  hear  even  that,  I  have  no  right  to  dispense  with 
that  prerogative,  nor  inclination  to  omit  what  you  desire  should 
be  done.  I  am  going  into  the  country  for  a  fortnight  or  three 
weeks,  there  I  shall  drink  goat  whey,  rather  to  purify  the  blood 
from  unclean  food  and  irregular  living,  than  as  a  remedy  to  any 
certain  known  distemper. 

A  month's  easterly  wind  that  has  blasted  almost  every  plant 
and  tree,  has  not  been  able  to  make  me  shake,  so  I  have  reason 
to  think  there  is  no  remains  of  an  ague  in  me. 

Lord  Bury  sets  out  tomorrow  for  Fort  William.  He  goes 
through  great  part  of  the  Highlands,  visits  and  examines  most 
of  the  fortresses,  and  new-made  roads,  (I  suppose  by  order)  stays 
away  eighteen  or  twenty  days,  and  three  weeks  after  his  return, 
flies  to  England.  This  regiment  has  undergone  a  surprising 
change  in  a  few  months.  Trapaud,  who  waited  upon  you  in 
September  or  October  last,  then  the  youngest  captain,  is  now  the 
second,  or  will  be  so  in  a  very  short  time.  The  present  vacancy 
by  the  death  of  a  captain,  we  are  told,  is  to  go  in  the  regiment, 
to  the  great  satisfaction  of  the  poor  subalterns,  who  have  been 
often  overlooked.  Colonel  Rich  is  with  his  battalion  at  Fort 
William  in  health  and  great  spirits  ;  he  does  not  leave  Scotland 
till  they  change  quarters,  and  are  settled  for  the  winter  at 
Glasgow. 

My  duty,  if  you  please,  to  my  mother,  I  wish  you  all 
imaginable  happiness  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

His  application  on  behalf  of  his  mother's  friend,  Mrs.  Scott, 
was  not  successful  at  that  time. 


COLONEL  AMHERST  125 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  31*^  May,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — I  send  you  Colonel  Amherst's  answer  to  me, 
that  Mrs.  Scott  may  see  what  is  to  be  expected,  and  take  her 
resolutions  accordingly.  Fm  very  well  persuaded  that  Amherst 
has  done  his  part,  and  I  hope  you  will  be  convinced  that  I  have 
not  been  wanting  on  mine.  It  was  easy  to  foresee  the  answer ; 
because  nobody  I  believe,  doubts  but  that  H.R.H.  disposes  of  all 
the  employments  in  the  Corps  of  Artillery,  as  much  as  if  he  was 
Grand  Master,  and  as  he  has  their  well-being  vastly  at  heart,  he 
will  take  pains  to  place  proper  people  to  the  vacancies  that  men 
of  abilities  may  appear  amongst  them.  This  resolution  of  his, 
should  not,  I  daresay,  exclude  the  young  gentleman  in  question, 
because,  as  Mrs.  Scott  is  a  lady  of  good  sense,  she  will  have 
prepared  her  son  for  the  world,  by  the  best  education  in  her 
power  to  procure  him ;  but  the  great  difficulty  is  to  convince 
the  Duke  of  that  and  get  his  name  enrolled  in  the  book  of  pre- 
ferment, though  it  should  be  even  at  the  end  of  the  list.  As 
you  were  very  desirous  to  bring  about  this  affair  to  Mrs.  Scott's 
satisfaction  it  gave  me  great  concern  to  observe  that  all  the 
sincerity  and  good  inclinations  of  my  friend  Amherst  could  not 
effect  it,  and  that  I  got  no  other  return  to  my  request  then 
his  wishes  to  serve  us,  expressed  with  much  civility  and  good 
nature.  Accidents  have  hindered  us  hitherto  from  going  into 
the  country,  there  seems  no  obstacle  left  now,  and  I  intend  to 
leave  this  place  in  two  days,  and  on  the  third  begin  drink  the 
goat  whey.  My  duty  to  the  General. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  old  General  had  had  information  from  one  Captain 
Hindes,  whom  he  met  in  London,  that  the  20th  was  to  depart 
immediately.     Wolfe  explains  that  this  was  an  error. 

To  his  Father. 

Perth,  June  22,  1750. 

Dear  Sir, — When  Lord  Bury  went  into  the  Highlands,  I 
left  Perth  in  order  to  drink  the  goat  whey.  His  return  has 
brought  me  back  to  the  regiment  much  sooner  than  I  should 
have  come,  had  I  considered  my  health  only,  but  something  is 
due  to  him  in  this  country  where  the  want  of  proper  company 


126    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF    WOLFE 

makes  his  stay  here  very  unpleasant.  The  officers  of  the  regi- 
ment are  vastly  dispersed ;  and  he  is  sometimes  at  a  loss  for 
people  to  converse  with.  He  expects  leave  to  retire  very  soon, 
and  certainly  won't  stay  long  after  obtaining  it. 

I  drank  the  whey  and  went  into  a  cold  bath  fourteen  days, 
in  that  time  I  found  such  an  alteration  for  the  better,  that,  if  I 
had  been  at  liberty  to  continue  that  way  of  life  a  month  longer, 
I  make  no  doubt  but  it  would  have  been  of  considerable  advan- 
tage. The  march  of  two  companies  into  Angus  has  perhaps 
made  Mr.  Hindes  imagine  that  the  whole  battalion  was  to 
change  their  quarters,  especially  as  Pulteney''s  moved  early  in 
the  summer  to  Aberdeenshire,  but  it  is  not  probable  that  we 
shall  leave  Perth  before  the  middle  of  October.  It  will  take 
the  remainder  of  that  month  to  clothe  the  men,  and  settle  them 
in  their  new  quarters,  and  that  is  what  Lord  Bury  expects  I 
should  see  done. 

Hindes  is  lately  made  a  Captain  Lieutenant  in  the  Artillery ; 
he  has  risen  from  a  low  degree,  by  constant  application  and  good 
behaviour.  He  has  uncommon  civility  in  his  way,  and  I  believe, 
many  valuable  qualities.  His  successor  in  the  company  died  a 
few  days  after  his  arrival.  I  had  information  from  a  very  safe 
hand,  that  it  was  your  intention  to  make  no  distinction  between 
the  Major  and  Lt.  Colonel  in  one  particular.  I  proceeded  upon 
those  grounds,  and  have  as  appears  by  your  letter  conformed  to 
your  inclination,  which  in  this  and  everything  else  I  always  find 
to  be  greatly  in  my  favour.  My  duty  to  my  mother. 
I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  Colonel  Lafausille,  now  actual 
commander  of  Wolfe's  regiment,  was  the  officer  who  ravaged  the 
country  of  the  rebels  after  Culloden. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  nth  July,  1750. 

Dear  Sir, — You'll  be  perhaps  surprised  that  Lord  Bury 
should  be  refused  leave  to  go  to  England ;  the  King's  absence 
is  given  as  a  reason  for  keeping  as  many  officers  as  possible  to 
their  duty :  and  though  he  had  got  to  Edinburgh  in  his 
way  to  Raby  Castle  a  letter  met  him  there  that  changed  his 
route. 


HIGHLAND   SPORT  127 

Everything  in  Scotland  is  in  the  most  perfect  calm  and 
quiet.  But  late  discoveries  have  made  it  very  apparent  that 
the  tranquillity  of  this  country  is  nohow  so  well  secured  as 
by  a  considerable  armed  body  ;  and  such  a  body  is  now  so 
disposed  throughout  the  whole  Highlands  that  any  attempt 
must  be  crushed  in  the  beginning.  The  Highlanders  are  so 
narrowly  watched  that  they  are  even  forced  to  abandon  their 
favourite  practice  of  stealing  cattle,  and  are  either  reduced  to 
live  honestly  and  industriously,  or  starve  through  excess  of 
idleness. 

Since  I  writ  my  last  letter  to  you,  I  have  been  in  a  country 
where  Colonel  Lafausille's  name  is  still  dreadful  in  their  ears, 
and  where  we  have  a  detachment  chiefly  intended  to  prevent  the 
officers  of  the  Scotch  regiments  in  the  French  service  from 
recruiting.  I  went  three  days  successively  a-shooting  in  the  hills 
from  five  in  the  morning  till  night.  I  never  knew  such  fatigue. 
Some  amends  were  made  us  by  the  quantity  of  game  and  ele- 
gance of  the  sport ;  but  I,  who  am  a  very  bad  shot,  had  an  equal 
share  of  the  labour  and  less  of  the  entertainment. 

Some  officers  of  other  regiments  are  come  to  Scotland  from 
Gibraltar.  Most  of  them  are  very  well  pleased  with  the  place 
and  don't  express  any  dislike  to  return  there.  Indeed  they  are 
Scotch,  a  set  of  men  particularly  in  the  esteem  of  the  present 
governor  (who  was  thought  to  be  a  good  deal  under  that  influ- 
ence here).  But  it  is  not  much  to  be  wondered  at  that  they  are 
contented  in  any  part  of  the  world ;  for  I'm  sure  their  native 
lot  is  fallen  in  a  barren  ground. 

I  have  not  received  a  letter  from  my  mother,  I  think,  these 
six  weeks.  Your  reasons  for  her  not  writing  are  very  unpleasing 
ones,  as  they  convince  me  that  she  is  rather  worse  even  than  you 
describe.  'Tis  an  unhappy  distemper  and  the  pain  intolerable. 
She  has  my  sincere  and  constant  wishes  for  her  welfare.  I  beg 
my  duty  to  her  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  have  some  thoughts  of  going  this  winter  into  Lor- 
raine, to  Metz,  or  Thionville,  if  you  approve  the  notion.  If  I 
am  to  be  absent  from  the  regiment,  I  suppose  it  is  the  same 
thing  to  the  Duke  where  I  am,  but  to  myself  of  vast  importance. 
I  want  to  be  perfect  in  the  French  language.  There  is  a  fine 
academy  of  artillery  and  the  business  of  an  engineer  at  Metz. 
I  shall  be  glad  of  your  opinion,  by  which  I  shall  always  be 


128     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

regulated.  A  winter  idly  spent  in  London  (and  'tis  difficult  not 
to  spend  it  idly)  would,  at  this  time,  be  of  sensible  prejudice  ; 
perhaps  infuse  such  notions  and  inclinations  as  are  not  to  be  got 
the  better  of. 


Wolfe's  scorbutic  trouble  grew  more  pronounced  and  he  made 
valiant  efforts  to  counteract  it. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  Uth  July,  1750. 
Dear  Madam, — I  persuaded  myself  that  this  post  would 
have  brought  me  some  news  of  your  health,  and  such  as  I  should 
have  reason  to  be  pleased  with  ;  I  want  to  see  it  under  your  own 
hand,  'tis  to  me  the  most  agreeable  proof  of  your  recovery, 
though  one  that  I  could  wish  never  to  stand  in  the  need  of.  I 
don't  think  since  my  first  leaving  you  there  ever  has  been  so  long 
an  interval  of  silence  on  your  part,  which  I  am  afraid  does  but 
too  manifestly  imply  your  want  of  health,  you  are  otherwise  too 
good  to  refuse  me  a  satisfaction  that  I  have  always  justly 
reckoned  amongst  the  greatest  of  my  life.  My  former  com- 
i  plaint,  which  is  now  pronounced  and  declared  to  be  the  scurYy, 
[has  broken  out  again  with  more  violence  than  ever;  so  that 
necessarily  some  more  violent  remedy  must  be  applied.  I  am  a 
little  surprised  at  this  second  appearance,  as  my  way  of  living 
has  been  of  late  an  example  of  regularity ;  I  have  never  drank, 
and  do  upon  all  occasions  abstain  from  strong  food  ;  and  in 
general  eat  very  moderately,  so  that  there  must  have  been  in  my 
constitution  a  strong  propensity  to  that  disorder ;  all  mankind 
more  or  less  have  the  seeds  of  it  in  their  blood,  and  it  discovers 
itself,  I  suppose,  in  proportion  to  the  encouragement  it  meets 
with ;  though  this  seems  to  be  contradicted  in  me ;  to  remove 
all  apprehensions  on  your  side,  I  must  acquaint  you,  that  it  never 
has  or  does,  break  out,  anywhere  but  upon  my  hands,  a  part  the 
least  affected  by  most  other  distempers.  I  heartily  wish  you 
well  and  hope  to  hear  soon  that  you  are  so. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son 

J.  Wolfe. 

Although  a  great  deal  of  correspondence  had  passed  between 
Lord  Bury  and  his  Lieutenant-Colonel  in  the  Highlands,  yet  the 
former  had  not  yet  visited  the  regiment.      Wolfe  was  snatching  a 


LORD    BURY  129 

brief  holiday  in  the  country  when  he  had  word  that  the  new 
colonel  was  coming  to  Perth.  He,  therefore,  returned  to  that 
city  towards  the  end  of  June,  and  got  the  regiment  into  condition 
for  inspection.  Bury  w£is  a  man  of  fashion,  and  by  no  means 
inclined  to  waste  much  time  in  such  a  God-forsaken  spot  as  the 
Highlands.  Three  weeks  sufficed  for  him  to  leave  London,  review 
his  regiment,  look  in  at  Stirling,  Perth  and  Fort  Augustus,  and 
return.  He  found,  as  he  expected,  that  he  had  a  good  man  to  take 
the  work  off  his  hands,  and  was  by  no  means  inclined  to  listen 
sympathetically  to  Wolfe's  cherished  plan  of  a  long  furlough  or 
one  which  could  take  place  immediately.  There  was  a  great  deal 
of  regimental  labour  in  getting  the  men  properly  equipped,  and 
August  and  September  and  October  wore  away  and  found  him  still  v 
at  Perth  and  its  neighbourhood,  dreaming  of  perfecting  his  mili- 1 
tary  education  at  Metz  or  Thionville.  As  the  summer  wore  on, 
however,  Wolfe's  health  and  spirits  improved. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  13^A  August,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — Though  your  letter  has  in  it  some  unpleasant 
particulars,  the  weak  condition  of  your  health  is  by  far  the  more 
so.  It  is  easy  for  us  all  to  bear  up  against  attacks  of  a  lesser 
kind,  but  to  be  disabled  and  cut  off  by  distemper  from  the  enjoy- 
ment of  life  and  common  tranquillity  is  the  heaviest  of  all  calami- 
ties. For  some  years  past  we  have  begun  a  course  of  good  for- 
tune, preserved  and  protected  where  was  most  need,  and,  my 
brother's  death  excepted,  free  from  affliction.  We  may  make 
some  allowance  now,  and,  for  my  part,  who  am  likely  to  be  the 
greatest  sufferer  by  any  diminution  of  the  stock,  I  can  easily 
console  myself  for  losses  that  way.  All  I  desire  is,  that  you  two 
may  meet  with  no  disturbance  to  your  own  persons,  but  pass 
your  days  in  health  and  peace.  I  heartily  wish  that  these  lighter 
accidents  may  not  interrupt  your  felicity,  which  I  would  have 
fixed  upon  the  firmest  foundation. 

It  is  extremely  good  in  you  to  endeavour  to  set  the  business 
of  the  mortgage  in  a  clear  light,  as  the  motive  to  that  under- 
taking is  of  a  generous  nature.  I  am  persuaded  the  sums  will 
answer  your  expectation.  If  not  we  are  only  where  we  were ; 
for  it  has  long  been  thought  desperate.  It  will  be  some  satisfac- 
tion that  we  have  not  been  wanting  on  our  side  to  recover  what 
the  neglect  of  our  pretended  friends  had  thrown  away. 

I  have  but  just  returned  from  Lord  Glenorchy's,  where  I 


130    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

stayed  a  week.  Lady  Glenorchy  is  your  acquaintance,  and 
expresses  a  great  regard  for  you.  She  says  you  have  surprising 
luck  at  quadrille,  and  bid  me  tell  you  she  wishes  it  may  continue. 
The  poor  woman  is  in  a  state  of  banishment;  she  hates  the 
country  and  dislikes  the  inhabitants.  Her  love  to  her  husband, 
and  immoderate  fondness  of  her  young  son,  are  just  enough  to 
make  her  stay  tolerable.  They  invited  and  entertained  me  with 
all  imaginable  civility.^ 

George  Warde  made  me  a  visit  of  four  days.  I  could  not 
help  being  astonished  at  the  strength  of  his  understanding  which 
I  never  discovered  so  fully  before.  To  that  he  has  added  a  just 
and  upright  way  of  thinking  very  uncommon,  and  the  strictest 
morals  of  any  young  man  amongst  my  acquaintance ;  this  last 
won't  surprise  you,  because  he  was  never  reckoned  vicious.  He 
is  extremely  indifferent  to  preferment  and  high  employment  in 
the  army,  partly  from  his  defect  of  speech,  but  principally  from 
an  easiness,  or  rather  indolence,  of  temper  that  make  him  unfit 
to  bear  a  heavy  part  in  life. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

His  next  epistle  is  full  of  his  French  project.      ^ 

To  HIS  Father. 

Perth,  \st  September,  1750. 
Dear  Sir, — I  am  glad  to  have  your  approbation  in  whatever 
I  undertake,  especially  in  those  things  that  are  most  worth  your 
consideration,  and  are  of  importance  to  myself.  The  assurances 
you  give  me  of  your  assistance  are  kind  and  friendly.  If  the 
request  be  properly  examined,  there  can  be  no  objection  to  it ; 
for  I  ask  no  more  than  an  opportunity  to  be  better  acquainted 
with  the  duty  of  an  officer,  and  to  have  it  in  my  power  to  speak 
the  French  language  correctly, — a  language  that  is  now  in  such 
general  use.  For  idleness  or  amusement  I  need  not  go  out  of 
London,  or  at  least  not  further  than  Paris ;  but  as  the  business 
I  am  going  upon  will  require  all  my  labour  and  attention,  I 
chuse  to  be  at  a  distance  from  any  temptation.  If  the  Duke 
consents,  it  will  be  with  regret ;  for  the  perfection  of  military 
knowledge,  in  his  Royal  Highness''s  eye,  is  the  command  of  a 
regiment  to  men  of  our  rank,  and  his  notion  of  care  and  diligence 

^  Viscount  Glenorchy,  son  of  the  third  Earl  of  Breadalbane,  resided  at 
Balloch  Castle,  near  Perth.  His  wife  was  Willielma,  daughter  of  William 
Maxwell  of  Perth. 


HOPES   OF  FURLOUGH  131 

centres  entirely  in  sticking  eternally  at  the  same  point,  viz.  the 
battalion ;  though  I  could  undertake  to  make  it  appear  that 
nothing  is  more  necessary  towards  doing  one"'s  part  well  than  a 
little  respite  at  convenient  seasons. 

Lord  Bury,  too,  will  with  difficulty  be  brought  to  hearken  to 
such  a  proposal.  I  intend  to  try  him  in  a  post  or  two,  and  ask 
ten  months'  leave  at  once.  Though  I  have  all  the  reasons  in  the 
world  to  be  satisfied  with  his  behaviour  to  me,  yet  there  are 
many  circumstances  that  foretell  his  opposition ;  but  the  manner 
in  which  he  will  express  himself  will  leave  me  no  room  to  be  dis- 
pleased even  with  a  denial  on  his  part,  or  rather  he''ll  endeavour 
to  satisfy  me  of  his  good  intentions,  and  fix  the  refusal  some- 
where else. 

I  shall  be  cruelly  disappointed  if  this  fails,  for  my  time  of 
application  will  soon  be  over,  and  the  sooner  by  the  discourage- 
ment and  mortification  that  follow  the  disappointment.  If 
General  Mordaunt  is  in  town,  I  can  write  to  him.  He  may  say 
something  upon  the  occasion  that  might  be  serviceable. 

Donnellan  complains  bitterly  of  Gibraltar ;  he  desires  me  to 
speak  to  you  in  favour  of  him,  but  as  it  is  a  regimental  business, 
I  shall  be  tender,  though  I  heartily  wish  he  could  be  indulged. 

The  letter  you  enclosed  is  quite  unintelligible.  Either  the 
writer  meant  to  be  perfectly  facetious,  or  the  letter  is  not  come 
to  the  proper  person,  for  it  is  in  a  character  that  I  am 
unacquainted  with.^ 

I  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother. 

And  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  Wolfes  at  Greenwich  were  now  seeking  for  another  house. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  23rd  September ,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — I  am  a  little  later  in  answering  your  letter 
than  I  ought  to  be.  The  truth  is,  I  have  been  at  a  gentleman's 
house  in  the  country,  where  they  would  not  allow  me  leisure 
even  to  do  the  most  pleasing  parts  of  my  duty,  and  hindered  me 
from  writing  to  you.  I'm  sorry  to  hear  that  knavery  has  crept 
into  your  town,  and  to  your  very  doors.  These  are  interrup- 
tions and  inconveniences  in  life  that  we  are  in  England  very 
much  troubled  with,  and  yet  much  more  to  be  desired  than  the 

^  A  missive  from  a  lady,  complaining  of  Colonel  Wolfe's  neglect  of  the  sex, 

K  2 


132    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

murdering  bloody  genius  of  the  other  nations.     The  mildness  of 
our  laws  does  not  enough  discourage  the  practice  of  robbing,  but 
•    in  a  great  measure  prevents  the  terrible  effects  of  despair. 

I  hope  Lady  Vanbrugh  will  accept  your  offer,  or  if  she  does 
not,  I  hope  youll  come  up  to  her  price.  A  good  and  healthy 
situation  can't  be  purchased  at  too  high  a  rate,  and  the  Castle 
you  speak  of,  if  I  remember  right,  is  so  situated. ^  I  want  to 
have  you  well  fixed  in  a  comfortable  house  in  a  wholesome  air, 
and  when  you  procure  that  for  yourselves,  you'll  help  me  to  a 
great  share  of  tranquillity  that  I  am  unacquainted  with,  while 
there  remains  anything  to  be  done  that  can  furnish  you  with 
the  means  of  happiness.  I  give  you  my  word  that  though  I 
have  in  myself  a  wandering  and  unsettled  turn  of  mind,  regard- 
less of  any  fixed  condition,  and  indifferent  as  to  many  of  the 
great  concerns  of  life,  yet  I  am  perfectly  steady  when  I  consider 
of  your  well-being,  and  earnestly  bent  upon  seeing  you  in  quiet 
possession  of  the  few  things  that  are  necessary  to  satisfy  your 
moderate  desires.  I  am  delighted  to  hear  you  say  my  father  has 
been  so  well  this  summer.  Am  I  never  to  eat  figs  with  him  in 
his  own  garden  ?  How  readily  could  I  resign  my  military 
authority,  and  lay  down  my  command,  for  the  pleasure  of 
walking  with  him  upon  the  dry  ground  and  gathering  his 
fruit ! 

There's  no  fish  in  this  part  of  the  world  but  salmon  ;  in  the 
Orkneys  and  Shetlands  there  are  various  kinds,  and  well  cured. 
I  don't  believe  it  will  be  difficult  to  get  what  you  want,  though  I 
have  not  the  best  talents  for  those  sort  of  things.  In  this  I 
resemble  a  friend  of  yours  most  exactly.  I  wish  there  was  as 
strong  a  resemblance  in  many  other  respects.  I  never  give  any- 
thing away  that  I  intend  for  you,  but  I  think  the  hood  is  hardly 
worth  your  acceptance.  I  believe  my  father  did  not  get  the 
skins  I  brought  from  Holland.  I  have  sent  to  Norway  for  most 
elegant  furs  ;  enough  for  linings  of  all  sorts. 

My  journey  to  London  will  be  very  short,  if  the  Duke  gives 
me  leave  to  go  abroad ;  if  not,  I  move  but  slowly,  and  visit  my 
uncle  Tin  and  the  rest.  It  matters  little  what  season  of  the 
year  I  travel  in,  for  I  am  absolutely  as  hard  as  flint,  and  can 

^  Vanbrugh  Castle,  Blackheath,  built  by  the  famous  architect  and 
dramatist.  It  was  occupied  by  his  widow,  who  survived  him  fifty  years. 
She  sold  it  eventually  to  Lord  Tyrawley,  who,  in  turn,  disposed  of  the 
property  to  Charles  Brett,  the  Wolfes'  friend  at  Greenwich. 


LETTER  TO   RICKSON  133 

bear  all  the  extremes  of  heat  and  cold  that  are  known  in  these 
climates  with  great  ease. 

My  duty,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
I  regret  Mrs.  Cade's  misfortune.^ 

At  the  beginning  of  October  the  regiment  assembled  at 
Dundee  for  the  purposes  of  being  equipped  with  clothing,  etc.,  and 
for  the  next  four  or  five  weeks  Wolfe  had  his  hands  full.  Yet  he 
found  time  for  a  long  letter  to  Rickson. 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

Dundee,  October y  1750. 
Dear  Rickson, — You  were  embarked  long  before  I  thought 
you  ready  for  your  expedition  (to  Nova  Scotia)  and  sailed  before 
I  could  imagine  you  on  board.  I  intended  to  have  bid  you  fare- 
well, and  sent  my  good  wishes  to  attend  you.  Indeed,  I  was  not 
without  hopes  of  hearing  from  my  friend  before  he  went  off;  for 
upon  such  changes  he  seldom  forgot  to  make  me  acquainted  with 
his  destination.  I  am  not  entirely  indifferent  as  to  what  befalls 
you,  and  should  have  been  glad  to  know  how  such  an  under- 
taking as  this  is,  agreed  with  your  way  of  thinking ;  and 
whether,  after  a  good  deal  of  service  you  would  not  rather  have 
sat  down  in  peace  and  rest ;  or  if  your  active  spirit  prompts  you 
to  enterprise,  and  pushes  you  to  pursuits  new  and  uncommon  ; 
whether  this,  (the  expedition)  certainly  great  in  its  nature,  suits 
your  inclination.  Since  I  cannot  be  clearly  informed  of  these 
matters  till  I  hear  from  you  I  shall  content  myself  with  enter- 
taining some  conjectures  that  are  favourable  to  your  interests. 
You  are  happy  in  a  governor ;  and  he'll  be  happy  to  have  one 
near  him  that  can  be  so  serviceable  to  him  as  you  have  it  in  your 
power  to  be.  I  dare  say  you  are  on  good  terms  together,  and 
mutual  aid  will  confirm  your  former  friendship.  He  will  require 
from  you  industry  and  assiduity ;  and  in  return  you  may  expect 
his  confidence  and  trust.  I  look  upon  his  situation  as  requiring 
one  of  his  very  way  of  thinking,  before  all  things  else  :  for  to 
settle  a  new  colony,  justice,  humanity  and  disinterestedness  are 
the  high  requisites  ;  the  rest  follows  from  the  excellent  nature 
of  our  Government,  which  extends  itself  in  full  force  to  its 
remotest  dependency. 

^  She  had  been  robbed,  while  under  the  Wolfes'  roof,  by  a  Scotch  footman 
("  James  ")  who  decamped. 


134    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

In  what  a  state  of  felicity  are  our  American  colonies  com- 
pared to  those  of  other  nations ;  and  how  blessed  are  the 
Americans  that  are  in  our  neighbourhood  above  those  that 
border  upon  the  French  and  Spaniards.  A  free  people  cannot 
oppress  ;  but  despotism  and  bigotry  find  enemies  among  the 
most  innocent.  It  is  to  the  eternal  honour  of  the  English  nation 
that  we  have  helped  to  heal  the  wound  given  by  the  Spaniards 
to  mankind  by  their  cruelty,  pride  and  covetousness.  Within 
the  influence  of  our  happy  Government,  all  nations  are  in 
security.  The  barrier  you  are  to  form,  will,  if  it  takes  place, 
strengthen  ourselves,  protect  and  support  all  our  adherents  ;  and 
as  I  pretend  to  have  some  concern  for  the  general  good,  and  a  vast 
desire  to  see  the  propagation  of  freedom  and  truth,  I  am  very 
anxious  about  the  success  of  this  undertaking,  and  do  most 
sincerely  wish  that  it  may  have  a  prosperous  issue.  I  think  it  is 
vastly  worth  your  while  to  apply  yourself  to  business,  you  that 
are  so  well  acquainted  with  it :  and  without  any  compliment,  I 
may  venture  to  assert  that  Cornwallis  has  few  more  capable  to  do 
him,  and  the  public,  considerable  service  than  yourself. 

I  beg  you  will  tell  me  at  large  the  condition  of  your  affairs 
and  what  kind  of  order  there  is  in  your  community ;  the  notions 
that  prevail ;  the  method  of  administering  justice  ;  the  distribu- 
tion of  lands,  and  their  cultivation ;  the  nations  that  composed 
the  colony  and  who  are  the  most  numerous  ;  if  under  military 
government,  how  long  that  is  to  continue ;  and  what  sect  in 
religious  aflairs  is  the  most  prevailing.  If  ever  you  advise  upon 
this  last  subject,  remember  to  be  moderate.  I  suppose  the 
Governor  has  some  sort  of  council,  and  should  be  glad  to  know 
what  it  is  composed  of.  The  southern  colonies  will  be  concerned 
in  this  settlement,  and  have  probably  sent  some  able  men  to 
assist  you  with  their  advice,  and  with  a  proper  plan  of  adminis- 
tration. Tell  me  likewise  what  climate  you  live  in,  and  what 
soil  you  have  to  do  with ;  whether  the  country  is  mountainous 
and  woody,  or  plain  ;  if  well  watered. 

I  see  by  a  map  (now  before  me)  that  you  are  between 
44  and  45  degrees  of  latitude ;  in  most  parts  of  Europe  the 
air  is  warmer  by  several  degrees,  because  we  are  sheltered  by  the 
prodigious  forests  of  Norway  and  Lapland  from  the  north  winds. 
I  am  afraid  you  are  more  exposed ;  your  great  cold  continent  to 
the  north  may  exert  some  severe  effects  upon  you.  Direct  to  me 
at  your  agent's  ...  If  you  think  I  can  serve  you  or  be  of  any 
use,  I  ...  I  will  send  you  anything  you  have  a  mind  for,  when 


HIS   HOPES   SHATTERED  135 

.  .  .  directions  to  have  it  sent  for  I  expect  ...  to  go  abroad 
for  eight  or  ten  months  ;  do  not  let  the  circumstance  prevent  you 
from  writing.  I  set  out  for  London  next  week  if  it  is  allowed, 
shall  be  in  less  than  forty  days  settled  at  Metz,  in  Lorraine, 
where  I  propose  to  pass  the  winter ;  you  will  easily  guess  my  aim 
in  that.  I  intend  to  ramble  in  the  summer  along  the  Rhine 
into  Switzerland,  and  back  through  France  and  the  Netherlands 
and  perhaps  more.  I  hope  you  have  a  good  provision  of  books. 
Rutherford  has  published  his  ;  and  there  is  a  Frenchman  has  told 
me  many  excellent  truths,  in  two  volumes,  entitled,  "  L'Esprit 
des  Lois.""  ^  It  is  a  piece  of  writing  that  would  be  of  great  use 
where  you  are.     Will  you  have  him  .? 

Tell  Cornwallis  that  I  thank  him  for  making  me  a  Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel 2  (which,  by-the-bye,  you  did  not  take  the  least 
notice  of) ;  if  I  was  to  rise  by  his  merit,  as  upon  this  occasion,  I 
should  soon  be  at  the  top  of  the  list.  He  promised  to  write  to 
some  of  us,  but  has  not :  they  are  not  the  less  ardent  for  his 
prosperity ;  and  the  whole  corps  unites  in  one  common  wish  for 
his  welfare  and  success.    Pray  tell  him  so,  as  you  may  do  it  safely. 

Your  old  corps  comes  back  from  Gibralter  next  summer. 
Do  you  know  that  Conway  has  got  a  company  over  Thompson 
by  Elkins's  death  ?  I  will  correspond  constantly  with  you  in 
whatever  part  of  the  world  we  happen  to  be  thrown,  provided 
you  do  not  force  me,  by  neglect,  to  leave  off  writing.  We  have 
but  this  one  way  left  to  preserve  the  remembrance  of  each  other 
as  lively  as  I  could  wish,  and  as  I  hope  you  do.  The  old  General 
(his  father)  your  friend,  preserves  his  health,  and  is  ...  he  has 
often  wished  to  have  you  again  in  his  regiment.  Farewell !  I 
am  most  affectionately,  my  dear  Rickson, 

Your  faithful  friend, 

J.  Wolfe. 

After  all  the  young  officer'*s  hopes  and  aspirations,  it  was  cer- 
tainly a  little  staggering,  when  his  leave  of  absence  came  at  last  to 
have  it  accompanied  by  Lord  Bury'*s  intimation  that  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief objected  to  his  going  abroad.  Farewell  then  to 
his  dreams  of  Metz  or  Thionville.  It  was  a  cruel  blow,  and  illus- 
trates either  Cumberland's  narrowness  or  else  his  fear  that  Wolfe, 
disgusted  with  the  prospects  his  profession  held  out  to  him  in 
Britain,  would  be  tempted  to  enter  the  Prussian  service. 

1  Montesquieu's.     First  published  at  Geneva  in  1748. 
^  See  ante,  p.  119. 


136     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

To  HIS  Father. 

Dundee,  ^th  October,  1750. 
Dear  Sir, — Though  I  ought  never  to  make  you  any  excuse, 
because  it  ought  never  to  be  necessary,  I  can  safely  say  that  I 
have  had  something  to  do  for  this  week  past.  When  a  regiment 
moves  from  one  set  of  quarters  to  another,  you  know  the 
commanding  officer  may  find  full  employment.  The  last  division 
came  to  the  Town  on  October  1st,  and  we  have  ever  since  been 
intent  upon  getting  the  companies  that  axe  to  move  in  condition 
to  march.  It  will  be  the  20th  before  my  part  is  done  and  about 
the  24th,  if  no  accident  prevents  it,  and  my  leave  is  granted  in 
form,  I  shall  set  out  for  England.  In  my  Lord  Bury's  last 
letter  I  am  told  not  to  think  of  going  abroad,  for  that  H.  Pitt 
is  against  it.  I  acquiesce  for  this  single  reason  :  that  there  is  a 
necessity  to  submit,  though  my  inclinations  lead  me  a  different 
way.  How  much  does  the  Duke  mistake  my  sentiments,  or  how 
greatly  does  he  oppose  the  only  method  that  can  be  fallen  upon 
to  preserve  any  knowledge  of  military  affairs  in  the  army.  I 
shan't  say  to  introduce  it,  for  infinite  pains  have  been  taken  to 
make  us  acquainted  with  some  particular  branches,  which  yet,  do 
not  amount  to  all  that  may  be  required  from  an  officer.  I 
believe  you  would  be  very  glad  to  see  your  son  from  amongst  the 
ignorant,  and  wish  to  have  a  representative  something  worthy  of 
yourself;  from  which  I  conclude,  that  your  concern  at  this  dis- 
appointment will  not  be  less  than  mine. 

Spending  a  couple  of  days  in  Edinburgh,  on  November  4 
Wolfe  took  the  stage  coach  to  York,  making  the  journey  in 
about  thirty-six  hours. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

York,  Qth  November,  1750. 

Dear  Madam, — As  I  am  excessively  fatigued  you'll  excuse 
my  giving  you  a  very  short  account  of  myself.  I  set  out  from 
Edinburgh  on  Sunday  the  4th  inst,  and  came  that  day  to  Belford 
with  the  most  favourable  weather  imaginable.  Yesterday  I 
travelled  from  Belford  to  Durham  in  a  storm  of  wind  and  rain, 
and  this  day  reached  this  city  by  7  at  night,  though  opposed 
by  many  difficulties,  of  which  the  overflowing  of  some  rivers  were 
not  the  least.     I  beg  my  duty  to  my  Father,  and  am 

Dear  Madam,  etc. 

J.  Wolfe. 


RESULTS   OF   DESPAIR  137 

From  thence  he  did  not  fail  to  call  upon  his  maternal  relations 
the  Thompsons  and  Sotherons  ^  at  Sotterington,  Pomfret  and  Terry- 
bridge.  On  the  14th  he  arrived  in  the  capital,  thinking  to  go  on 
to  Greenwich  to  join  his  parents,  but  they  had  already  changed 
quarters  for  town. 

No  more  serious  wound  could  have  been  given  to  Wolfe  than 
the  thwarting  of  his  dearest  wishes  which  the  Commander-in-Chief, 
abetted  and  instigated  by  Lord  Bury,  had  inflicted.  It  was  a 
serious  crisis  in  our  young  hero''s  life  thus  to  be  condemned  to  pass 
a  whole  winter  amidst  the  follies  and  the  vices  and  the  idleness  of 
London  when  the  capital  was  already  odious  to  him  by  reason  of 
his  disappointment  in  love.  Wolfe  was  a  youth  of  singularly  strong 
character.  He  had  always  despised  the  follies  and  the  excesses  of 
many  of  his  brother  officers.  Everything  in  the  tone  of  the  age 
favoured  a  weakening  of  the  moral  fibre ;  it  was  the  age  par  excel- 
lence of  the  rake,  the  gambler,  and  the  wine-bibber.  Profligacy  and 
idleness,  however,  offered  few  attractions  to  the  youthful  lieutenant- 
colonel.  Vice  was  not  in  his  composition.  But  he  was  supremely 
miserable.  For  a  fortnight  he  sought  to  drown  his  sorrow  in  a 
flood  of  Westminster  eloquence.  He  attended  the  debates  in 
Parliament,  and  took  the  measure  of  the  orators  and  politicians  of 
the  day.  One  debate  particularly  interested  him — that  relating  to  ^ 
Nova  Scotia  and  the  American  Colonies,  yet,  perhaps,  with  no  pre- 
sentiment of  what  awaited  himself  across  the  Atlantic.  He  could  *j 
no  longer  contain  himself.  Some  hasty  words  of  his  provoking  a 
scene  with  his  parents  he  abruptly  quitted  their  roof,  and  plunged  for 
the  first  and  only  time  in  his  life  in  the  dissipations  of  London.  The 
cause  of  the  quarrel  was,  of  course,  Miss  Lawson.  He  bridled  when 
his  mother  repeatedly  termed  it  as  a  senseless  passion,  but  the  flood- 
gates of  his  anger  were  opened  wide  indeed  when  Mrs.  Wolfe  hinted 
at  the  gallantries  of  his  inamorata's  mother.  He  hotly  repelled  the 
insinuation,  and  demanded  who  dared  to  say  such  a  thing,  and  was 
told  that  his  old  friend,  Charles  Brett,  knew  all  about  it.  His  in- 
dignation was  scarcely  lessened  when  his  mother  urged  him  to  pay 
his  suit  to  Miss  Hoskins,  the  Croydon  heiress,  and  perhaps  he  felt 
some  malicious  pleasure  a  few  weeks  later  when  he  heard  that  John 
Warde  of  Squerryes  had  already  proposed  for  that  young  lady's 
hand  and  been  accepted.     They  were  married  in  February  1751. 

^  ''The  Sotherons,"  says  Burke,  ''have  been  most  respectably  settled  on 
their  own  estates  at  Holm,  Spaldingmore,  in  the  East  Riding,  and  Hook  in  the 
West  Riding,  for  more  than  two  centuries."  William  Sotheron,  Esq.,  of 
Pontefract,  had  married  Mrs.  Wolfe's  sister  Lucy,  co-heiress  of  her  brother, 
Tindal  Thompson.     The  family  is  now  represented  by  Lord  Estcourt. 


138    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Meanwhile  Wolfe  fell  ill  and  lay  for  some  weeks  in  a  state  of  great 
weakness  and  misery.  When  he  had  patched  himself  together,  he 
took  a  formal  leave  of  his  parents  and  rejoined  his  regiment  in 
Scotland. 

Before  his  departure  he  addressed  a  short  letter  to  his  friend 
Rickson. 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

Old  Burlington  Street,  March  lUh,  1751. 

Dear  Rickson, — I  writ  to  you  six  months  ago  ;  but  as  you 
took  no  notice  of  my  letter,  I  conclude  you  did  not  receive  it ; 
nay  I  am  almost  sure  you  did  not  receive  it,  because  I  ask'd  a 
favour  of  you  which  I  think  you  would  not  have  refused  me.  I 
desired  you  to  inform  me  of  the  condition  of  your  new  colony 
(Nova  Scotia,  which  I  have  much  at  heart),  and  was  not  a  little 
curious  to  know  your  particular  employment  and  manner  of 
living.  Though  I  have  a  deal  to  say  to  you,  I  can't  speak  it 
just  now,  for  I  am  confined  in  point  of  time ;  but  as  I  have  the 
same  regard  and  friendship  for  you  that  I  always  had,  I  have  the 
same  desire  to  cultivate  our  good  understanding.  Write  to  me 
then,  and  forget  nothing  that  you  imagine  can  give  me  light  into 
your  affairs.  I  am  going  to  Scotland  in  ten  days  ;  your  agent 
will  forward  a  letter  to  me  there. 

The  young  gentleman  who  delivers  my  letters  has  served  in 
the  regiment  with  me.  Want  of  precaution  and  not  want  of 
honesty,  obliges  him  to  leave  it.  Youll  learn  his  story  from 
Cornwallis.  I  desire  you  to  countenance  and  assist  him  a  little 
and  I  hope  you  may  not  think  any  services  that  you  may  do  him 
thrown  away.  May  you  be  healthy  and  happy.  I  shall  always 
wish  it  with  great  truth. 

I  am,  dear  Rickson, 

Your  affectionate  friend, 

J.  Wolfe. 

(This  letter  is  marked  "Answered  July  22,  1751.^') 
In  April   1751   the   head-quarters   of  the    regiment   were    at 
far-distant  Banff. 

Banff*  at  this  time  was  dreary,  cold  and  remote,  and  the 
first  few  weeks  of  his  sojourn  there  must  have  required  all  the 
philosophy    of  the   young  lieutenant-colonel.^     Solitude  brought 

1  '^  Few  places/'  observes  Wright,  ''  were  worse  calculated  to  '  pluck  from 
the  memory  a  rooted  sorrow.'     Exposed  to  the  storms  of  the  North  Sea,  it 


FRIENDSHIP   FOR   RICKSON        139 

its  reaction.  Wolfe's  eye  was  turned  inward  upon  himself.  He 
longed  for  the  society  of  his  own  friends,  and  having  abundant 
leisure,  if  any  man  with  his  duties  to  perform  could  be  said  to  have 
abundant  leisure,  indulged  in  long  letters  to  them.  One  addressed 
to  Captain  Rickson  well  deserves  to  be  given  in  full — 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

Banff,  QthJuney  1751. 

My  dear  Friend, — I  am  prepared  to  assist  you  in  your 
apology  whenever  you  think  it  requisite  ;  But  I  desire  you  will 
never  assign  that  as  a  reason  for  not  writing,  which,  in  my 
opinion,  should  prompt  you  for  it.  Attachments  between  us  of 
certain  characters  do  generally  arise  from  something  alike  in  their 
natures,  and  should  never  fall  from  a  certain  degree  of  firmness, 
that  makes  them  the  same  all  the  world  over,  and  incapable  of 
any  diminution.  I  have,  as  you  justly  acknowledge,  a  persever- 
ance in  friendship,  that  time,  nor  distance,  nor  circumstances, 
can  defeat — nay,  even  neglect  can  hardly  conquer  it ;  and  you  are 
just  as  warm  and  as  near  me,  in  North  America,  as  you  would 
be  upon  the  spot. 

I  writ  to  you  from  London,  and  sent  my  letter  by  one  that  I 
recommend  for  your  countenance.  I  hope  what  has  befallen 
him  will  be  a  shield  against  accidents  of  that  sort  for  the  future. 
When  I  writ  that  letter,  your  poor  friend  was  in  the  most  dis- 
tress, otherwise  you  should  have  had  more  of  me.  It  is  not  an 
hour  since  I  received  your  letter.  I  shall  answer  all  the  parts  of 
it  as  they  stand  in  their  order ;  and  you  see  I  lose  no  time, 
because  in  a  remote  and  solitary  part  of  the  globe. 

I  often  experience  the  infinite  satisfaction  there  is  in  the  only 
one  way  that  is  open  to  communicate  our  thoughts,  and  express 
that  truly  unalterable  serenity  of  affection  that  is  found  among 
friends,  and  nowhere  else.  I  conceive  it  no  less  comfortable  to 
you.  I  believe  that  no  man  can  have  a  sincerer  regard  for  you 
than  myself,  nor  can  any  man  wish  to  serve  and  assist  you  with 
more  ardour.  The  disappointment  you  speak  of  affects  me 
greatly,  and  the  more,  as  I  have  been  told  that  you  lived  with 
Cornwallis,  and,  consequently,  had  some  employment  near  him 
that  must  be  creditable  and  profitable,  which  I  imagined  you 
filled  with  all  the  integrity,  diligence,  and  skill  that  I  know  you 

was  one  of  the  coldest  and  dreariest  spots  in  Great  Britain,  without  society 
or  commerce,  and  approachable  only  by  a  ford  across  the  wide  river." 
Contemporary  accounts,  however,  make  Banif  far  less  disagreeable. 


140    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

possessed  of.  I  cannot  otherwise  than  account  for  the  prefer- 
ence given  to  Mr.  Cotterell,  that  there  has  been  an  early 
promise,  or  some  prevailing  recommendations  from  England  that 
Cornwallis  could  not  resist.  However,  if  I  was  Governor,  me- 
thinks  I  would  choose  about  my  person  some  experience  and 
military  ability,  as  requisite  in  the  affairs  of  a  new  colony, 
situated  as  yours  is,  as  any  branch  of  knowledge  whatever. 

This  disappointment  is  followed  by  a  resolution  in  you  that- 
I  approve  of  greatly,  because  it  will  release  you  from  a  life  that 
cannot  but  be  disagreeable,  and  place  you  where  you  will  be 
well  received.     But  I  take  it  to  be  a  thing  much  easier  conceived 

than  effected ;  for  though  I  grant  that is  a  beast,  and  fit 

only  to  hunt  the  wildest  of  all  wild  Indians,  yet  his  consent  to 
the  change,  I  doubt,  would  be  very  difficult  to  obtain,  though 
everything  else  went  smoothly  on,  and  you  know  without  it  the 
matter  rests.  You  have  done  well  to  write  to  my  father.  He 
is  extremely  disposed  to  do  you  any  good  office,  and  1  shall  take 
care  to  put  him  in  mind,  and  excite  him  by  all  the  motives  that 
will  touch  him  nearest,  to  assist  you. 

I  thank  you  for  partaking  with  me  in  the  satisfaction  of  a 
promotion.  You  found  your  expectations,  from  my  future 
fortune,  upon  the  best  grounds — my  love  and  thorough  sense  for 
your  worth ;  but  I  would  not  wish  you  should  wait  for  my 
power.  I  should  blush  to  see  myself  in  the  capacity.  Take  my 
inclinations  and  good  wishes  in  the  meantime,  and  believe  that 
whatever  falls  to  my  share  you  will  have  a  demand  upon.  If 
you  look  round  and  see  my  powerful  rivals  and  competitors, 
examine  who  and  what  they  are  ;  we  must  both  think  that  a 
little  moderation  in  our  views  is  very  becoming,  and  very  con- 
sistent with  my  situation.  I  believe  you  are  of  opinion  with 
me,  that  a  great  deal  of  good  fortune  has  fallen  to  my  share 
already. 

You  have  given  me  a  very  satisfactory  account  of  the  settle- 
ment, as  far  as  you  have  observed  or  have  had  an  opportunity 
to  inquire.  Till  your  letter  came  I  understood  that  we  were 
lords  and  proprietors  of  the  north  coast  of  Fundy  Bay,  for 
there's  a  vast  tract  of  country  between  that  and  the  river  St.  Law- 
rence. It  appears  to  me  that  Acadia  is  near  an  island,  and  the 
spot  where  you  are,  a  very  narrow  space  between  the  Gulf  and 
Bay.  If  so,  I  conclude  your  post  will  be  greatly  improved ;  and 
instead  of  the  shallow  works  that  you  describe,  something  sub- 
stantial will  be  erected,  capable  of  containing  a  large  garrison. 


HIGHLAND   SOLDIERS  141 

with  inhabitants  trained  to  arms,  in  expectation  of  future  wars 
with  France,  when  I  foresee  great  attempts  to  be  made  in  your 
neighbourhood.  When  I  say  thus,  I  mean  in  North  America. 
I  hope  it  is  true  what  is  mentioned  in  the  newspapers,  that  a 
strong  naval  armament  is  preparing  for  your  assistance.  I  wish 
they  would  increase  your  regiment  with  drafts  from  the  troops 
here.  I  could  send  you  some  very  good  little  soldiers.  If  our 
proposal  is  a  good  one,  I  will  shorten  the  work  and  lessen  the 
expense.  The  present  schemes  of  economy  are  destructive  to  great 
undertakings,  narrow  in  the  views  and  ruinous  in  the  consequence. 

I  was  in  the  House  of  Commons  this  winter,  when  great 
sums  of  money  were  proposed  for  you,  and  granted  readily 
enough.  But  nothing  said  of  any  increase  of  troops.  Mr. 
Pelham  spoke  very  faintly  upon  the  subject ;  wished  gentlemen 
would  well  weigh  the  importance  of  these  undertakings  before 
they  offered  them  for  public  approbation,  and  seemed  to  inti- 
mate that  it  might  probably  produce  a  quarrel  with  our  ever- 
lasting and  irreconcilable  adversary.  This  I  took  to  be  a  bad 
prognostic  ;  a  minister  cool  in  so  great  an  affair,  it  is  enough  to 
freeze  up  the  whole  !  but  perhaps  there  might  be  a  concealed 
manoeuvre  under  these  appearances,  as  in  case  of  accidents,  "  I 
am  not  to  blame,""  "  I  was  forced  to  carry  it  on,"  and  so  forth  ; 
in  the  meantime  I  hope  they  are  vigorous  in  supporting  our 
claims.  The  country  is  in  all  shapes  better  than  we  imagined 
it,  and  the  climate  less  severe  ;  the  extent  of  our  territory, 
perhaps,  won't  take  a  vast  deal  of  time  to  clear  ;  the  woods  you 
speak  of  are,  I  suppose,  to  the  west  of  Sheganecto  and  within 
the  limits  that  the  French  ascribe  for  themselves  and  usurp. 

Yours  is  now  the  dirtiest  as  well  as  the  most  insignificant 
and  unpleasant  branch  of  military  operations ;  no  room  for 
courage  and  skill  to  exert  itself,  no  hope  of  ending  it  by  a 
decisive  blow,  and  a  perpetual  danger  of  assassination ;  these 
circumstances  discourage  the  firmest  minds.  Brave  men,  when 
they  see  the  least  room  for  conquest,  think  it  easy,  and  generally 
make  it  so ;  but  they  grow  impatient  with  perpetual  disad- 
vantages. I  should  imagine  that  two  or  three  independent 
Highland  companies  might  be  of  use ;  they  are  hardy,  intrepid, 
accustomed  to  a  rough  country,  and  no  great  mischief  if  they  fall. 
How  can  you  better  employ  a  secret  enemy  than  by  making  his 
end  conducive  to  the  common  good  .?  If  this  sentiment  should 
take  wind,  what  an  execrable  and  bloody  being  should  I  be 
considered  here  in  the  midst  of  Popery  and  Jacobitism ! 


142    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

I  don't  understand  what  is  meant  by  the  wooden  forts  at 
HaHfax.  I  have  a  poor  conceit  of  wooden  fortifications,  and 
would  wish  to  have  them  changed  for  ramparts  of  earth,  the 
rest  in  time  ;  it  is  probable  that  the  great  attention  that  must 
be  given  at  first  to  building  the  habitations  and  clearing  the 
ground  about  the  town,  left  no  interval  for  other  work  ;  but  I 
hope  to  hear  in  your  next  letter,  that  our  principal  city  (Hali- 
fax) is  considerably  improved  in  strength.  You  gentlemen,  too, 
with  your  parapet  three  or  four  feet  thick,  that  a  heavy  shower 
would  dissolve,  you  ought  to  increase  it,  and  put  yourselves  into 
a  state  of  security.  You  appear  to  be  the  barrier  and  bulwark 
of  our  settlements  on  the  land,  and  should  be  lodged  in  a 
sufficient  fortress,  and  with  an  eye  to  enterprise.  I  understand 
by  your  account  that  the  post  you  occupy^  is  a  very  small 
distance  from  the  end  of  the  bay ;  and  should  be  glad  to  know 
how  far  that  is  from  the  nearest  part  of  the  Gulf  of  St. 
Lawrence,  or  from  what  in  the  map  appears  to  be  a  lake,  or 
harbour  communicating  with  that  gulf. 

I  rejoice  much  that  you  commanded  that  detachment  with 
which  your  Lieutenant-Colonel  marched ;  the  Indians  might 
have  had  courage,  in  that  case  you  would  have  overcome  them  in 
battle  under  the  eye  of  your  chief ;  as  it  was,  he  saw  you  well 
disposed  to  fight.  Perhaps  I  am  talking  at  random,  but  it  is 
conformable  to  the  idea  I  have  of  this  Colonel  Lawrence,^  whose 
name  we  often  see  in  the  papers.  I  suppose  him  to  be  amongst 
the  first  officers  of  the  expedition,  high-minded  himself,  and  a 
judge  of  it  in  others  ;  his  ready  march  to  the  enemy  marks  the 
first,  and  his  being  the  head  of  your  undertaking  gives  one  an 
opinion  of  his  judgment.  If  'tis  to  his  advantage,  I  desire  you 
to  let  me  have  his  character  at  full  length  ;  perhaps  there's  a 
strong  mixture,  as  it  generally  happens  in  ardent  men  :  in  that 
case  let's  have  the  best  fully,  and  the  other  slightly  touched.  I 
am  sorry  that  you  are  not  so  linked  in  with  some  of  your 
brethren  as  to  form  an  intimacy  and  confidence ;  without  it  the 
world  is  a  soliture,  and  what  must  your  part  of  it  be  ?  I  pity 
you  very  heartily,  for  I  am  sure  you  are  very  ready  to  mingle 
with  a  good  disposition.  'Tis  doubly  a  misfortune  to  be  banished 
without  the  relief  of  books,  or  possibility  of  reading ;  the  only 
amends  that  can  be  made  to  us  that  are  sequestered  in  the  lonely 

*  Lunenburg. 

2  Governor  of  Nova  Scotia,  who  was  afterwards  forced  to  undertake  the 
expulsion  of  the  Acadians. 


ADVANTAGES   OF   EXILE  143 

and  melancholy  spots,  is  that  we  can  fill  up  our  time  with  study. 
When  I  am  in  Scotland  I  look  upon  myself  as  an  exile  ;  with 
respect  to  the  inhabitants  I  am  so,  for  I  dislike  'em  much  ;  'tis 
then  I  pick  up  my  best  store,  and  try  to  help  an  indifferent 
education,  and  slow  faculties  ;  and  I  can  say  that  I  have  really 
acquired  more  knowledge  that  way,  than  in  all  my  former  life. 

I  would  by  all  means  have  you  get  home  before  the  next 
winter,  but  I  don't  approve  in  the  least  of  the  resolution  you 
seem  to  have  taken  rather  than  continue  in  that  service.  Do 
everything  in  your  power  to  change,  but  don't  leave  the  army, 
as  you  must  when  you  go  upon  half-pay.  If  there  is  any  female 
in  the  case,  any  reasonable  scheme  for  mamage,  I  have  nothing 
to  say ;  that  knocks  down  all  arguments  ;  they  have  other  sorts 
of  passions  to  support  them.  In  reality,  the  most  I  can  offer 
(were  you  unbiassed)  would  not  amount  to  weighty  matter,  for 
I  see  no  early  appearance  whereon  to  mould  a  bait  for  your 
ambition  ;  yet  I  cannot  consent  to  your  leaving  us  entirely,  in 
the  hopes  of  fairer  days.  If  I  did  not  love  you  personally,  and 
wish  your  happiness  very  heartily,  I  should  advise  you  to  stay 
where  you  are,  and  would  say  that  you  ought  to  be  kept  there  ; 
and  give,  as  a  reason  for  saying  so,  that  I  do  think  the  infancy 
of  a  colony  has  need  of  able  hands,  civil  and  military,  to  sustain 
it,  and  I  should  be  for  sacrificing  you  and  all  the  men  of  worth 
to  the  general  good.  You  speak  of  Mr.  Browse,  the  engineer ; 
pray  say  a  word  or  two  of  his  capacity,  and  tell  me  if  there  are 
among  you  any  connoiseurs  in  that  business. 

Is  the  island  of  St.  John  in  the  possession  of  the  French,  or 
do  we  occupy  it  ?  It  would  be  unpardonable  in  me  if  I  omitted 
to  send  you  intelligence  of  what  is  stirring  amongst  us  ;  I  mean, 
if  I  kept  from  you  anything  that  comes  to  my  knowledge  ;  but 
in  truth  we  are  here  almost  as  much  in  the  dark  as  to  public 
transactions  as  can  be  conceived ;  however,  I  picked  up  some 
account  of  the  Act  for  settling  the  Regency,^  and  as  perhaps 
you  have  not  seen  it,  it  will  be  worth  your  perusal ;  it  is  a 
subject  of  no  small  importance. 

[An  analysis  of  the  statute  follows.] 

Three  large  ships  of  war  (guard  ships)  are  sailed  with  the 
Scotch  Fusiliers  and  Conway's  regiments  to  relieve  the  King's 
and  Skelton's,  and  they,  as  we  hear,  are  to  march  directly  into 
Scotland,  which,  by  the  bye,  is  a  little  out  of  the  way,  to  carry 
them  from  the  hottest  to  the  coldest  part  of  the  King's 
*  Frederick^  Prince  of  Wales^  had  died  on  the  20th  of  March,  preceding. 


144    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

dominions  ;  if  they  come,  our  regiment  goes  to  Inverness,  where 
I  shall  remain  all  the  winter ;  if  one  only  comes,  or  neither,  I  go 
to  Aberdeen.  Loftus  and  Donnellan  are  both  in  England.  The 
former  had  been  dangerously  ill,  is  a  little  recovered.  Donnellan 
too,  has  been  out  of  order,  and  is  gone  to  Bristol  for  health. 

I  am  not  sure  whether  I  mentioned  it  or  not  in  my  last 
letter,  but  as  it  is  a  great  grief  to  me,  I  will  hazard  the  repetition 
to  tell  it  you.  I  got  powerful  people  to  ask  the  Duke  no  less 
than  three  times,  for  leave  to  go  abroad,  and  he  absolutely 
refused  me  that  necessary  indulgence  :  this  I  consider  a  very 
unlucky  incident,  and  very  discouraging  ;  moreover,  he  accom- 
panied his  denial  with  a  speech  that  leaves  no  hope — that  a 
Lieutenant-Colonel  was  an  officer  of  too  high  a  rank  to  be 
allowed  to  leave  his  regiment  for  any  considerable  time.  This 
is  a  dreadful  mistake,  and  if  obstinately  pursued,  will  disgust  a 
number  of  good  intentions,  and  preserve  that  prevailing  igno- 
rance of  military  affairs  that  has  been  so  fatal  to  us  in  all  our 
undertakings,  and  will  be  for  ever  so,  unless  other  measures  are 
pursued.  We  fall  every  day  lower  and  lower  from  our  real 
characters,  and  are  so  totally  engaged  in  everything  that  is 
minute  and  trifling,  that  one  would  almost  imagine  the  idea  of 
war  was  extinguished  amongst  us ;  they  will  hardly  allow  us  to 
recollect  the  little  service  we  have  seen :  that  is  to  say,  the 
merit  of  things  seem  to  return  into  their  old  channel,  and  he  is 
the  brightest  in  his  profession  that  is  the  most  impertinent, 
talks  loudest,  and  knows  least. 

I  repeat  it  again  to  you  that  poor  Porter  left  his  regiment 
with  the  approbation  of  all  his  brethren,  and  with  the  reputa- 
tion of  honesty  and  upright  behaviour.  It  will  be  a  charatable 
thing  to  do  him  any  good  office. 

I  went  to  London  in  November,  and  came  back  in  the  middle 
of  April.  In  that  short  time  I  committed  more  imprudent  acts 
than  in  all  my  life  before.  I  lived  in  the  idlest,  dissolute, 
abandoned  manner  that  could  be  conceived,  and  that  not  out  of 
vice,  which  is  the  most  extraordinary  part  of  it.  I  have  escaped 
at  length,  and  am  once  again  master  of  my  reason,  and  hereafter 
it  shall  rule  my  conduct,  at  least  I  hope  so.  My  father  has 
offisred  money  for  the  prettiest-situated  house  in  England,  and  I 
believe  he  will  have  it  for  about  <£^3000.  It  is  a  great  sum  to  be 
so  employed ;  but  as  it  procures  him  the  pleasure  he  likes,  and 
a  fine  air,  it  is  well  laid  out.  It  looks  as  if  he  intended  to  sell 
his  house  in  Greenwich  since  the  other  is  upon  Black  Heath  ; 


MAKING   HIS   PEACE  145 

the  new  bridge^   will   enable  him  ...  his  way   easily   to   St. 
James's. 

I  will  write  to  Loftus  to  send  you  some  porter  and  the  books. 
I  cannot  bear  to  hear  you  making  excuses  for  imaginary  trouble. 
I  will  .  .  .  hogshead  of  claret  from  Ireland  to  Gibraltar.  You 
cannot  do  me  a  greater  pleasure  than  by  pointing  out  to  me  a 
way  to  relieve  you,  though  ever  so  inconsiderable.  Write  to  me 
by  the  first  opportunity,  and  believe  me,  dear  Rickson, 

Ever  your  affectionate  friend, 

J.  W. 

It  will  be  seen  that  Wolfe  believed  in  the  value  of  two  or  three 
independent  Highland  Companies  on  active  service  in  North 
America.  At  this  time  this  was  a  highly  original  notion.  But 
the  more  Wolfe  considered  it  the  more  he  was  convinced  of  its 
worth.  We  shall  see  how  the  idea  grew  until  it  came  to  be 
adopted  by  the  Commander-in-Chief  on  a  scale  sufficient  to  raise 
the  fighting  standard  of  the  armies  overseas  and  even  to  effect  the 
destinies  of  the  Empire.  For  no  doubt  should  exist  as  to  which 
officer  is  due  in  the  first  instance  credit  of  sending  armed  High- 
landers to  fight  the  battles  of  their  common  country. 

This  was  the  day  of  letters  a  yard  long,  and  Wolfe  was  not 
one  to  stint  himself.  Besides,  he  had  his  peace  to  make  with  his 
parents,  and  it  was  in  a  spirit  of  sincere  contrition  that  he  penned 
what  follows. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Banff,  June  12,  1751. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  very  glad  from  the  knowledge  of  your 
sentiments  (which  in  a  case  that  concerns  myself  ought  justly  to 
be  preferred  to  my  own,  and  indeed  in  almost  all  other  cases)  to 
be  able  to  make  you  some  sort  of  apology  for  every  particular 
instance  of  vice  or  folly  that  has  very  luckily  fallen  under  your 
notice  while  I  had  the  honour  to  be  near  you.  I  say  very  luckily, 
for  if  you  or  some  other  perfect  friend  had  not  discovered  them, 
so  as  to  make  them  known  to  me,  I  might  have  continued  in 
the  conceit  of  there  being  no  such  thing  in  my  composition, 
and  consequently  they  must  in  time  have  taken  deep  root,  and 
increased  beyond  the  power  of  any  remedy.  Yours  is  a  very 
lively  picture  of  the  impertinence  and  idleness  that  is  often  in 
people  of  my  years,  so  that  it  is  not  quite  new  and  unexpected ; 

1  Westminster  Bridge. 

L 


146    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

and  if  I  do  not  mistake  this  is  not  the  first  time  that  you  have 
observed  the  seeds  of  imperfections  in  me,  that  perhaps  only 
wanted  nourishment  and  proper  occasion  to  break  forth.  I  am 
quite  persuaded  (though  you  express  some  indifference  in  the 
latter  part  of  your  letter)  that  you  mean  to  recover  me  from  the 
ill  habit  of  mind  you  have  seen  me  in,  and  with  that  view  and 
that  only  it  is  that  the  just  remarks  you  have  made  upon  my 
conduct  are  put  in  their  proper  light.  I  am  sure  at  the  same 
time  that  your  course  of  goodness  and  indulgence  to  me  is  not 
entirely  altered  and  that  you  are  ready  to  make  such  allowances 
as  may  be  expected  from  one  who  has  so  extensive  a  knowledge 
of  mankind  as  you  have. 

The  respect  1  have  for  you  and  strong  desire  to  be  better  in 
your  opinion  than  I  have  been  of  late,  will  put  me  upon 
pursuing  the  best  means  that  you  can  devise,  or  that  I  can 
imagine  for  such  an  alteration  of  behaviour  as  may  conduce  to 
that  end.  I  believe  the  first  step  to  amendment  is  to  acknowledge 
our  faults,  a  proof  that  we  think  them  faults.  This  I  do  very 
heartily  and  truly,  though  I  must  assert  that  most  of  them  have 
arisen  from  inadvertency  and  not  from  any  ill  intention.  I  am 
very  sensible  that  many  things  have  appeared  with  an  exceeding 
bad  grace,  but  am  nevertheless  quite  clear  and  conscious  that 
no  offence  ever  was,  or  could  be,  meant.  My  mother  told  me 
you  intended  to  write.  I  was  desirous  to  know  your  thoughts 
(which  I  am  sorry  to  say  I  have  been  but  too  often  unacquainted 
with)  and  that  is  one  reason  why  I  left  such  an  interval  between 
asking  you  pardon  in  the  short  though  sincere  manner  in  which 
I  did  it,  when  I  came  away,  and  making  all  the  submission  that 
can  be  made  to  one  that  I  am  very  unwilling  to  disoblige.  I 
hope  the  former  part  of  my  life  will  in  some  measure  make  this 
appear;  and  I  believe  I  may  venture  to  say  that  my  future 
conduct  will  help  to  convince  you. 

I  ask  only  one  favour  and  I  think  it  reasonable,  which  is, 
that  when  things  are  anyhow  wrong  you  will  have  so  much 
consideration  for  my  good  and  your  own  peace,  as  to  make 
known  your  opinion  as  early  as  possible ;  that  I  may  check  the 
mischief  in  its  infancy,  and  correct  one  after  another  those 
failings  that  few  of  us  are  free  from,  but  that  all  may  remove. 
You  very  justly  ridicule  the  situation  I  was  in :  it  was  truly 
ridiculous,  I  am  as  sensible  of  it  as  any  man  can  be;  but, 
however,  it  must  be  allowed  that  it  is  not  the  first  of  that  kind, 
and  the  effects  are  often  very  extraordinary.     I  am  concerned 


CONFESSES   HIS   FAULTS  147 

that  you  had  any  share  of  the  uneasiness.  I  wish  it  had  all 
been  mine  own  since  I  brought  it  upon  myself.  Most  of  my 
thoughts  and  inconsistency  of  action,  receive  their  bias  from 
hence.  I  do  not  say  all ;  for  I  never  heard  it  accused  of 
producing  either  pride  or  vanity.  Impatience  of  temper, 
restlessness  of  disposition  and  an  indifference  about  all,  even  the 
most  important  affairs  of  life,  are  the  constant  attendants  of 
that  pernicious  distemper.  Should  I  at  any  other  time  have 
neglected  the  affairs  of  the  regiment,  regardless  of  my  duty  as 
an  officer  in  every  respect .?  Or  should  I  have  quitted  the  only 
pursuit  that  engages  my  attention  with  any  ardour  and  banish 
all  my  application  without  a  cause  ?  I  don't  remember  a  time 
of  my  life  that  I  forsook  either  the  one  or  the  other  before,  nor 
can  I  tax  myself  with  having  been  wanting  in  more  material 
matters  (my  duty  to  you)  till  now.^ 

I  could  readily  and  cheerfully  have  refused  myself  the 
pleasure  of  conversing  with  my  friends  in  your  house  (for  few 
came  there  upon  any  other  footing)  in  consideration  of  your 
health.  I  am  not  indeed  excusable  for  not  having  done  it ; 
since  there  was  room  to  imagine  it  might  be  troublesome  ;  but 
I  should  have  thought  it  no  hardship,  had  it  been  spoke  of  as  a 
necessary  conformity  to  your  inclinations.  I  am  no  doubt,  much 
to  blame  with  regard  to  Donnellan ;  but  there  are  some 
circumstances  that  may  perhaps  take  off  a  part.  I  neither  saw 
nor  conversed  with  him  half  so  often  as  I  used  to  do  before  he 
had  (as  an  officer  of  your  regiment)  brought  your  displeasure 
upon  him.  We  have  been  long  intimate :  I  knew  him  to  have 
a  good  deal  of  worth  and  honour,  and  think  he  has  a  better 
understanding  than  is  commonly  met  with.  He  has  often  done 
me  friendly  and  kind  offices,  which  I  do  not  immediately  over- 
look or  forget.  I  condemned  his  behaviour  to  you,  though  I 
could  never  look  upon  it  as  a  mark  of  contempt  but  rather  an 
error  in  the  way  of  his  profession.  I  did  think  him  greatly  to 
blame,  and  told  him  so,  and  moreover  advised  him  to  conduct 
himself  in  such  a  manner  towards  you,  as  might  re-establish  him 
in  your  favour. 

The  warm  expression  that  fell  from  me  upon  the  Duke's 
refusing  to  let  me  go  abroad,  savoured  much  of  ingratitude  ;  the 

1  The  story  is  that  Wolfe  had  made  an  impassioned  public  declaration 
of  his  love  for  Miss  Lawson  at  a  ball,  threatening  a  rival  with  immediate 
chastisement.     It  is  doubtful,  however,  if  his  passion  really  wrought  such  a 
change  in  his  character  and  habits  as  he  here  depicts. 
L  2 


148     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

words,  it  must  be  confessed,  were  arrogant  and  vain.  I  thought 
them  so  at  the  time  of  speaking.  Passion  and  disappointment 
produced  them.  Certainly  his  Royal  Highness  could  not  have 
so  truly  convinced  me  of  his  kindness  as  by  consenting  to  a 
reasonable  and  salutary  request.  For  if  eternal  imprisonment 
and  exile  is  to  follow  preferment,  few  will  be  thankful  for  the 
favour. 

I  am  sorry  you  can  think  it  troublesome  to  me  to  read  any 
letter  from  you,  though  it  should  be  the  mirror  of  my  follies. 
You  say  it  shall  be  the  last  upon  this  subject ;  and  I  am  sure 
you  will  do  me  the  justice  to  recollect  that  it  is  likewise  the 
first.  It  shall  be  my  care  not  to  give  such  large  room  for  reproof 
hereafter ;  and  from  no  motive  so  powerful  as  a  thorough 
regard  for  your  person,  and  a  sense  of  what  is  due  to  you  as  a 
parent.  My  mother  might  safely  have  ventured  to  send  me  her 
blessing,  though  she  should  build  it  only  upon  the  strength  of  a 
return  from  me.  I  do  sometimes  leave  out  in  my  letter  what  I 
least  intend,  and  when  I  omit  expressing  my  affections  for  either 
of  you,  there  remains  little  else  that  is  valuable.  I  beg  my  duty 
to  her  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  think  I  never  could  advance  that  there  were  no 
"  natural '"'  affections.  I  believe  I  said,  and  still  am  of  opinion, 
that  affections  of  all  kinds  spring  from  mutual  good  offices 
done  to  one  another ;  and  that  is  natural.  I  likewise  said  that 
opposite  interests  frequently  extinguish  those  affections,  which  I 
imagine  will  be  allowed. 

His  mother  required,  it  seems,  considerable  placation. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Peterhead,  19  July,  1751. 
Dear  Madam, — I  began  to  give  up  all  hopes  of  hearing  from 
you,  and  to  think  myself  exiled  to  all  intents  and  purposes 
without  the  consolation  of  being  so  much  as  thought  of  in  this 
state  of  bondage  and  confinement.  I  am  not  addicted  by  con- 
stitution either  to  the  vapours  or  to  despair,  and  have  determined 
always  to  leave  the  cure  of  present  evils  to  a  distant  day ; 
imagining  that  they  must  be  great  indeed  that  have  no  remedy 
in  the  bosom  of  time  ;  and  such  I  hope  never  to  know.     When 


THE   BLACKHEATH   HOUSE        149 

I  say  I  put  off  the  cure,  I  suppose  no  present  application 
sufficient,  and  therefore  prefer  a  remote  one,  rather  than  give  it 
up,  or  submit  to  disasters,  and  designs,  though  they  should  be 
ever  so  powerful.  Your  letter  short  as  it  is,  unusually  so,  has 
nevertheless  been  of  great  aid  and  relief,  because  it  convinces 
me,  that,  though  deservedly  neglected,  I  am  not  entirely  forgot, 
alienated  or  divided  from  you,  as  of  no  further  concern.  It 
is  fit  that  some  share  of  evil  should  fall  upon  us  in  this 
life,  to  teach  us  and  enjoy  the  best  that  we  are  formed  to 
taste. 

I  think  you  are  vastly  well  employed,  though  laboriously. 
This  I  consider  as  your  last  labour,  and  therefore  reconcile 
myself  in  some  measure  to  the  excess  of  your  fatigue  ;  by  looking 
upon  it  as  the  end  of  pain  and  beginning  of  uninterrupted  quiet. 
I  hope  you  will  fit  up  your  new  house  with  all  the  elegance  and 
convenience  that  so  lovely  a  situation,  your  future  residence 
deserves.  How  you  dispose  of  yoiu-  other  house,  furniture,  etc., 
regards  me  not,  provided  you  make  yourself  easy  in  this  you  do 
all  that  can  be  wished  or  expected.  When  you  are  quite  at 
rest,  I  shall  be  glad  to  hear  you  describe  the  work  of  your  own 
hands ;  though,  as  I  never  saw  the  inside  of  your  habitation,  it 
will  be  difficult  to  make  me  understand  your  operations.  I  hope 
you  have  a  little  garden. 

You  refer  me  to  Charles  Brett  for  intelligence  and  say  you 
will  always  do  so.  This  I  cannot  contradict  or  oppose,  but  I 
must  say  (though  he  is  a  valuable  correspondent)  that  many 
things  come  much  more  pleasingly  from  you  than  from  him.  I 
have  but  few  franks  left,  so,  to  save  you  a  little  trouble  and 
some  expense  I  put  your  letter  under  his  cover. 

I  wish  you  both  much  health  and  beg  my  duty  to  my  father, 
and  am  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

The  old  General  was  now  entering  his  sixty-seventh  year,  and 
was  looking  forward  to  repose,  after  fifty  years  of  service. 

To  HIS  Father.  > 

Peterhead,  July  29,  1761. 
Dear  Sir, — Honest  Charles  writes  me  word  (with  a  good 
deal  of  concern)  that  he  thinks  you  are  not  quite  so  cheerful  as 
he  could  wish ;  this  affects  me  very  particularly :  first,  because 


150    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

I  hate  to  hear  that  any  of  your  hours  pass  unpleasantly,  or  that 
anything  breaks  in  upon  the  usual  quiet  of  your  mind,  and  then 
starts  the  disagreeable  reflection,  that  possibly  I  may  contribute 
to  it.  I  don't  think  my  friend  meant  to  reproach  me,  but  I 
could  not  read  his  letter  without  feeling  remorse  and  repentance, 
for  any  ill  acts,  or  without  being  shocked  at  the  consequence  as 
far  as  it  regards  your  person.  If  it  be  true  that  I  still  create 
uneasiness,  I  would  endeavour  to  persuade  you,  as  well  as  words 
from  me  can  do  it ;  so  far  to  forget,  and  overlook  me  and  my 
irregularities,  as  not  to  entertain  a  thought  of  pain  for  what  has 
already  appeared  or  form  from  thence  a  judgment  of  what  may 
be  expected  hereafter ;  I  had  much  rather  be  quite  out  of  your 
thoughts  than  take  a  place  in  them  to  torment  you.  I  know  it 
is  not  easy,  entirely  to  shut  out  certain  objects  from  the  mind, 
but  it  is  not  difficult  to  accustom  oneself  to  represent  them 
under  a  pleasing  figure  :  when  your  son  comes  into  your  con- 
sideration, I  could  wish  you  would  imagine  him  a  little  recovered 
from  his  indiscretion,  and  determined  to  contribute  all  in  his 
power  to  make  his  father  (for  whom  he  has  the  greatest  respect 
and  tenderness)  pass  the  rest  of  his  days  in  uninterrupted 
peace. 

The  mineral  water  here  is  famous  for  the  cure  of  gravel,  I 
can  attest  its  virtue,  as  I  have  found  great  relief  from  it ;  I  can't 
say  it  agrees  with  me  in  other  respects  so  well.  I  leave  this 
place  in  a  few  days  and  return  to  Banff;  from  thence  I  propose 
to  visit  our  posts  in  the  Highlands,  and  amuse  myself  upon  the 
moors  for  ten  days,  or  a  fortnight.  I  find  the  regiment  quarters 
this  winter  at  Inverness,  as  the  two  batallions  from  the  Straits 
either  land  in  Scotland  or  march  directly  north.  The  weather 
is  sometimes  as  cold  as  it  is  in  England  in  the  month  of 
November :  I  could  not  have  imagined  that  the  climate  in  any 
part  of  this  island  could  be  so  severe :  this  is  the  most  eastern 
point  of  Scotland. 

I  wish  you  both  much  health.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother 
and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

For  Wolfe's  bladder  ailment  soap  was  prescribed — soap  taken 
internally,  a  frequently-mentioned  (and  absurd  and  barbarous) 
remedy  of  those  days. 


■ 


SUMMER  AT   BANFF  151 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Banff,  12;A^M5r.,  1761. 

Dear  Madam, — I  came  back  from  Peterhead  much  better 
satisfied  with  the  entertainment  I  found  there,  than  with  the 
famous  mineral  water.  I  drank  it  for  near  three  weeks  with 
some  success  as  to  the  principal  complaint,  but  soon  found  it 
affected  me  very  violently  in  the  lungs  and  stomach,  and  left  me 
a  fixed  pain  in  my  breast  that  alarmed  me  a  little,  but  it  begins 
now  to  weaken  and  wear  away.  I  consulted  a  physician  of 
reputed  knowledge,  who  advises  soap,  a  certain  sort  of  diet  and 
moderate  exercise  ;  to  all  which  I  can  easily  conform,  and  much 
more  than  this,  if  required,  rather  than  endure  pain  ;  my  temper 
of  mind  is  not  fashioned  for  much  suffering ;  patience  is  not  the 
leading  virtue  there.  I  should  tell  you  how  well  I  have  been 
diverted  and  how  much  I  have  been  obliged  to  your  sex  for 
many  cheerful  hours  ;  in  general,  there  were  women  of  good 
understanding,  others  of  great  vivacity  and  others  very  hand- 
some; so  that  a  man  could  not  fail  to  be  pleased  with  such 
variety  to  choose  out  of;  and  for  my  part,  I  always  think  a 
pretty  maid  either  has  all  the  other  beauties  or  does  not  want 
them.  I  know  you  would  be  glad  to  contribute  something 
towards  the  cure  of  a  bad  disease,  and  perhaps  I  may  put  it  in 
yoiu:  power.  Honey  is  recommended  to  me — if  you  get  any 
from  Minorca,  and  can  send  such  a  jar  as  I  devoured  in  London, 
it  will  be  doing  a  humane  and  benevolent  act.  Fisher  or  Charles 
Brett  know  how  to  direct  it  to  me,  or  may  enquire  of  Adair.  I 
must  put  up  a  petition  to  the  General  for  his  assistance.  That 
I  may  not  fall  away  with  spare  diet,  and  diminish  to  a  very 
skeleton,  I  propose  to  nourish  myself  with  chocolate  and  milk, 
and  therefore  desire  6  or  8  pounds  may  be  sent  from  London  for 
that  purpose. 

Our  winter  is  begun  already,  I  am  writing  now  before  a  great 
fire.  Dreadful  season  that  lasts  from  the  beginning  of  August 
till  the  middle  of  May  !  I  understand  that  your  work  is  done 
and  your  trouble  at  an  end,  I  rejoice  with  you,  and  hope  you 
find  it  well  bestowed,  since  it  probably  has  helped  to  make  your 
house  agreeable  and  comfortable  to  both. 

If  anything  can  add  to  the  care  that  people  generally  take 
of  themselves  under  any  complaint  it  should  be  the  advice  of 
their  friends,  and  consideration  for  those  they  love  ;  for  I  do 
assure  you  both,  that  it  is  almost  as  much  pain  to  me  to  know 
that  you  are  afflicted  on   my  account,  as  to  feel  the  effects  of 


152     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

the   distemper.     I   beg  my  duty  to  my  father,  and  am,  dear 
Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  have  but  very  few  franks,  and  therefore  am  (in 
commission  for  our  late  Chaplain)  obliged  to  desire  you  to  order 
his  letter  to  be  put  in  the  penny  post. 


VIII 
A   WINTER  AT  INVERNESS 

By  this  time  the  repentant  Lieutenant-Coloners  filial  advances 
had  met  with  their  due  reward,  and  for  the  time  being  all  was 
peace  in  the  Wolfe  household.  He  heard  with  deep  interest  the 
accounts  of  the  house  purchased  by  the  old  General  at  Blackheath, 
within  the  wall  of  Greenwich  Park,  and  next  to  Lord  Chesterfield's 
summer  residence  "  Babiole,"''  now  the  Ranger's  Lodge.  This  house 
was  to  be  much  occupied  by  Wolfe,  and  we  will  speak  of  it  hereafter. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Banff,  VJth  Sept.,  1751. 

Dear  Madam, — ^The  many  obliging  things  in  your  letter 
deserve  all  the  acknowledgments  I  am  able  to  make.  They 
claim  a  return  of  gratitude  from  me,  and  equal  concern  for  your 
happiness  and  welfare.  I  hope  very  few  words  will  serve  to 
convince  you  that  every  kindness  from  you  or  expression  of 
kindness  leaves  impressions  not  easily  erased. 

Whenever  you  are  found  to  speak  to  me  in  a  different  strain 
I  am  persuaded  it  is  much  against  your  inclinations,  impelled  by 
a  desire  to  correct  and  amend. 

It  would  be  a  kind  of  miracle  for  one  of  my  age  and  com- 
plexion to  get  through  life  without  stumbling.  Friendly  aid 
and  counsel  are  great  and  timely  supports,  and  reproof  is  most 
effectual  when  it  carries  with  it  a  concern  for  the  person  to 
whom  it  is  addressed.  This  is  the  way  I  understand  it  both 
from  my  father  and  you,  because  I  am  sure  nothing  but  a  base 
and  villainous  action  could  entirely  remove  your  affections ;  and 
that  I  don't  find  myself  capable  of. 

I  am  sometimes  in  the  character  of  a  military  parent,  and  am 
obliged  to  lay  great  restraint  upon  myself  that  others  may  profit 
by  it,  and  I  never  find  my  advice  so  well  attended  to,  as  when 
there  goes  along  with  it  a  mixture  of  care  for  the  good  and 
reputation  of  the  youth  that  errs.  You'll  be  apt  to  think  that 
a  man  so  subject  to  weakness  as  I  may  be  supposed  to  be,  can 
work  very  little  upon  the  minds  of  others,  or  give  them  a 
strength  and  firmness  that  I  do  not  possess.     But  a  man  might 

163 


154     LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

for  a  time  conceal,  though  not  conquer  his  infirmities,  and  may- 
direct  where  he  can't  execute.  The  sense  of  duty,  too,  in  the 
way  of  one's  profession,  may  operate  strongly  in  some  things, 
though  quite  useless  and  impotent  in  others. 

By  the  description  you  give  me  of  your  new  house,  most 
people  will  be  as  well  pleased  with  it  as  you  seem  to  be.  It  is 
the  work  of  your  own  hands,  and  youll  be  much  to  blame  if 
anything  is  wanting  to  make  it  every  way  convenient  and  to 
your  taste.  It  has  a  thousand  natural  advantages  that  you  may 
improve  till  it  becomes  delightful.  All  I  ask  is  that  in  the 
little  detached  department,  where  Charles  Brett  may  laugh  at 
leisure,  there  may  be  a  very  hard  bed,  upon  which  I  hope  to 
extend  my  long  limbs  in  twelve  or  fourteen  months,  and  take  a 
little  rest  from  care. 

Old  Roland  lived  five  or  six  years  with  me,  and  laid  the 
obligations  of  faithful  service  upon  me.  He  bore  pretty  well 
the  warmth  and  uncertainty  of  my  temper,  though  at  length, 
tired  of  that  and  eternal  wandering,  he  begged  to  be  released. 
I  can  safely  say  that  I  have  known  him  very  honest,  and  think 
he  must  still  be  so.  He  has  a  wonderful  calmness  and  quietness 
of  disposition,  that  I  sometimes  thought  degenerated  into 
stupidity.  I  hardly  ever  knew  him  to  give  offence  to  any  but 
myself,  and  then  perhaps  I  was  as  much  to  blame  as  he.^ 

Thus  much  for  his  valour  and  honesty  ;  I  think  myself  in  his 
debt.  I  never  intended  to  abandon  him.  I  propose  to  take  his 
son  when  old  enough  to  serve  me.  .  .  . 

I  hope  to  hear  from  you  now  and  then ;  you  shall  always  be 
as  short  or  as  long  as  you  please.  Only  remember  that  one  side 
is  very  agreeable,  but  four  sides,  four  times  as  agreeable,  and  so 
on  in  proportion.     I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe  was  very  glad  to  exchange  Banff  for  Inverness,  with 
which,  although  then  the  capital  of  Jacobitism,  Wolfe  was  familiar 
and  already  numbered  there  several  friends.  Of  Wolfe's  strictures 
here  and  elsewhere  upon  Scotland,  we  may  say  with  a  Scotch  critic 
of  Dr.  Johnson's  journey,  "  What  he  says  of  the  country  is  true, 
and  his  observations  on  the  people  are  what  must  naturally  occur 
to  a  sensible,  observing  and  reflecting  inhabitant  of  a  convenient 

1  See  ante,  p.  77. 


INVERNESS  155 

metropolis,  where  a  man  on  thirty  pounds  a  year  may  be  better 
accommodated  with  all  the  wants  of  life  than  Col  or  Sir  Allison."*'  ^ 
It  must  be  remembered  that  Wolfe  had  been  sent  into  Scotland 
upon  a  mission  which  rendered  him  and  his  men  highly  dis- 
agreeable to  the  majority  of  the  inhabitants. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Inverness,  October  Srd,  1751. 

Dear  Sir, — The  preparations  and  march  of  the  regiment 
have  taken  up  the  time  that  would  have  been  employed  in 
writing  to  you  and  to  others  that  have  a  title  to  expect  it  from 
me.  The  post  goes  hence  but  once  a  week,  which  makes  my 
letter  something  later  than  I  could  wish,  as  I  have  been  several 
days  in  town.  A  little  while  serves  to  discover  the  villainous 
nature  of  the  inhabitants,  and  brutality  of  the  people  in  its 
neighbourhood.  Those  too  who  pretend  the  greatest  attach- 
ment to  the  government,  and  who  every  day  feed  upon  the 
public  purse,  seem  to  distinguish  themselves  for  greater  rudeness 
and  incivility  than  the  open  and  professed  Jacobites.  With 
these  disadvantages  there  are  many  others  that  concern  us  as 
officers,  not  worth  relating  to  you ;  and  yet,  I  believe  we  shall 
find  means  to  get  through  the  long  winter  tolerably  well. 

A  gentleman  came  from  Perth  the  other  day  and  told  me  he 
saw  Mrs.  Wilkinson  very  disconsolate  and  unhappy  at  the  bad 
accommodation  she  meets  with  there.  I  can''t  wonder  at  it,  as 
little,  dirty,  stinking  lodgings  must  be  quite  new  to  one  that 
comes  directly  from  London,  and  was  never  out  of  it  till  now. 
But  I  would  advise  her  to  prepare  for  worse  places  than  Perth. 
By  degrees  I  hope  shell  be  inured  to  it,  and  then  become 
familiar.  Mrs.  Lafausille,  who  has  served  several  campaigns,  is 
an  older  and  better  soldier  than  the  other,  will  put  up  with  any 
inconveniences  for  the  sake  of  doing  her  duty  with  applause, 
and  to  the  satisfaction  of  her  Lieutenant-Colonel  and  command- 
ing officer,  to  whose  pleasure  she  always  wishes  to  contribute ; 
and  I  dare  say  never  refuses  her  assistance  to  make  him  perfectly 
happy.  I  had  a  long  letter  from  Rickson  some  days  ago.  He 
gives  me  no  great  opinion  of  the  settlement,  from  the  want  of  a 
more  considerable  armed  force,  the  present  being  insufficient  for 
its  defence.  He  seems  to  apprehend  some  attempts  from  the 
French,  who  injure  and  insult  us.  He  laments  his  own 
melancholy  condition,  and  wishes  it  were  possible  to  come  again 

*  Dempster,  quoted  by  Boswell,  1775. 


156    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

amongst  his  old  friends  and  companions.  I  imagine  your 
regiment  must  be  in  Scotland  by  this  time.  In  the  spring  they 
are  to  take  those  parts  in  the  Highlands  that  we  have  occupied 
this  summer. 

I  turned  aside  to  look  at  the  new  Fort  of  Ardersier,  or  Fort 
George,  and  find  a  vast  quantity  of  earth  thrown  up  for  ramparts, 
and  the  counterscarp  and  glacis  finished.  But  I  believe  there's 
still  work  for  six  or  seven  years  to  do.  When  it  is  finished  one 
may  venture  to  say  (without  saying  much)  that  it  will  be  the 
most  considerable  fortress,  and  the  best  situated  in  Great  Britain. 
I  fancy  your  neighbour,  Mr.  Skinner,  the  architect,  thinks  it  a 
very  good  fortification.^  I  dare  say  he  finds  it  so.  I  beg  my 
duty,  etc. 

James  Wolfe. 

It  was  now  more  than  five  years  since  Culloden  and  Wolfe 
made  a  survey  of  the  battlefield  in  a  somewhat  critical  frame 
of  mind. 

To  HIS  Father. 

October,  1751. 

Dear  Sir, — If  I  was  writing  to  any  other  than  yourself 
with  such  slight  furniture,  two  lines  would  finish  my  letter.^ 

I  have  surveyed  the  field  of  battle  of  Culloden  with  great 
exactness,  and  find  room  for  a  military  criticism  as  well  as 
a  place  for  a  little  ridicule  upon  some  famous  transactions  of 
that  memorable  day.  The  actors  shine  in  the  world  too  high 
and  bright  to  be  eclipsed  ;  but  it  is  plain  they  don't  borrow 
much  of  their  glory  from  their  performance  upon  that  occasion, 
however  they  may  have  distinguished  themselves  in  later  events. 
The  defects  were  not  so  visible  there  as  in  the  lower  agents.  I 
dare  say  you  don't  think  I  strike  at  the  Head.  One  may  safely 
pronounce  that  he  had  a  very  good  title  to  the  command ;  there 
was  no  rival  in  rank  nor  in  abilities.  If  you  were  upon  the  spot, 
perhaps  you  might  be  tempted  to  say  that  this  risk  should  not 
have   been   adventured,    nor   this   advantage   neglected.      You 

1  It  was  built  from  the  plans  of  Robert  Skinner  of  Greenwich  and  cost 
£160,000. 

2  Wright,  quoting  this  letter,  prefaces  it  by  a  reference  to  Wolfe's  paucity 
of  "  furniture,"  as  if  domestic  and  substantial  instead  of  merely  epistolary 
material  were  meant. 


NO   HEALTHY   DIVERSIONS        157 

would  not  have  left  those  ruffians  the  only  possible  means  of 
conquest,  nor  suffer  multitudes  to  go  off  unhurt  with  the  power 
to  destroy.  One  must  examine  the  field  of  battle  to  judge  of 
the  merit  of  Colonel  Rich's  great  resistance,  or,  which  is  the 
same  thing,  the  behaviour  of  the  battalion  under  his  command. 
But  why  this  censure  when  the  affair  is  so  happily  decided  ?  To 
exercise  one's  ill-nature  ?  No  ;  to  exercise  the  faculty  of  j  udging, 
— since  I  mention  this  to  you,  but  not  to  the  world.  The  more 
a  soldier  thinks  of  the  false  steps  of  those  that  are  gone  before, 
the  more  likely  he  is  to  avoid  them.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  examples  worthiest  of  imitation  should  never  be  lost 
sight  of,  as  they  will  be  the  best  and  truest  guides  in  every 
undertaking. 

Besides  the  multitude  of  evils  that  this  town  contains  we 
have  the  additional  mortification  that  the  country  about  us 
affords  very  little  relief ;  no  hunting  or  shooting, — both  healthy 
and  manly  diversions  that  I  take  great  delight  in.  Instead  of 
these,  I  ride  about  for  the  fresh  air  and  motion,  but  when  the 
snow  falls,  we  shall  have  little  else  to  do  but  to  eat  and  sleep. 
I  wonder  how  long  a  man  moderately  inclined  that  way  would 
require,  in  a  place  like  this,  to  wear  out  his  love  for  arms,  and 
soften  his  martial  spirit.  I  believe  the  passion  would  be  some- 
thing diminished  in  less  than  ten  years,  and  the  gentleman  be 
contented  to  be  a  little  lower  than  Caesar  in  the  list,  to  get  clear 
of  the  incumbrances  of  greatness. 

Loftus  wrote  to  me,  giving  intimation  of  his  arrival  in 
Scotland,  and  desiring  that  I  would  go  directly  to  Perth  to  see 
him  ;  it  is  about  a  hundred  miles  through  the  Highlands.  One 
would  think  my  friend  Arthur  did  not  know  the  carte  du  pays 
by  his  invitation.  Wilkinson  writes  me  word  that  your  clothing 
is  come ;  that  is,  he  tells  me  that  the  present  you  were  so  kind 
to  send  is  safe,  and  in  the  same  ship. 

Ours  is  as  yet  at  sea,  to  my  sorrow,  for  we  want  a  great 
many  men,  and  I  can't  send  off  the  recruiting-parties  till  they 
are  clothed.  I  shall  be  broke  for  not  completing  the  regiment ; 
they  sent  me  a  reprimand  for  not  doing  it  last  year,  though  I 
was  all  the  winter  in  London.  The  reprimand  was  due  to  my 
neglect  in  general,  but  not  at  all  as  it  was  applied  ;  unless  it 
could  be  supposed  that  I  had  any  extraordinary  influence  over 
Lord  Bury  and  acted  for  him,  whereas  it  is  notorious  that  he 
always  acts  for  himself. 

J.  Wolfe. 


158    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

If  there  was  nothing  else  to  do  in  his  leisure  at  Inverness,  there 
was  at  least  the  furnishing  forth  of  a  letter  home.  Few  reveal 
more  of  Wolfe's  character  than  the  following  discursive  com- 
position.    He  was  a  genius,  but  at  the  same  time  very  human. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  Qth  November,  1761. 

Dear  Madam, — You  must  not  be  surprised  if  this  letter  does 
not  reach  you  till  a  long  time  after  the  date  of  it,  for  "'tis  very 
possible  that  the  snows  will  retard  the  march  of  our  Highland 
post-boy,  who,  in  the  finest  seasons,  cannot  pride  himself  on 
much  expedition.  The  winds  sometimes  drive  the  snows  with 
such  violence  that  the  roads  are  utterly  impassable ;  and  again, 
when  it  thaws,  the  rivers  swell  so  prodigiously  that  there  is  no 
less  danger  and  difficulty  on  that  side.  I  have  not  been,  from 
the  severity  of  the  weather,  able  to  get  on  horseback  for  many 
days,  and  can  have  no  manner  of  diversion  out  of  my  own  room, 
unless  to  shoot  woodcocks  at  the  risk  of  rheumatism.  It  would 
be  unmanly  and  very  unbecoming  a  soldier  to  complain  of  little 
evils,  such  as  bad  food,  bad  lodging,  bad  fire.  Whoever  finds 
these  inconveniences  too  hard  to  put  up  with  will  never  be  a 
match  for  a  multitude  of  others  that  he  is  likely  to  meet  with  in 
his  travel  through  life,  especially  if  he  has  taken  the  trade  of 
war.  With  these  sort  of  reflections  I  reconcile  myself  to  Inver- 
ness, and  to  other  melancholy  spots  that  we  are  thrown  upon, 
and  find  (all  things  considered  and  thoroughly  examined)  there 
is  in  reality,  to  a  contented  mind,  very  little  difference  between 
one  place  and  another,  and  that  if  a  man  possesses  a  certain 
degree  of  firmness  and  serenity,  he  is  equal  to  almost  every 
calamity.  Besides,  in  aid  of  this  disposition,  I  like  a  military 
life,  and  endeavour  to  make  my  actions  correspond  in  some 
measure  with  that  liking.  Not  that  you  are  to  understand  your 
son  captivated  with  the  glare  and  blaze  of  our  employment.  No, 
there  is  an  object  much  beyond  it  that  attracts  my  eye ;  and  it 
is  with  some  concern  that  I  see  those  that  direct  us  often  miss 
the  proper  mark,  and  set  us,  their  servants,  upon  wrong  pursuits. 
This  is  not,  I  believe,  from  ill  intention,  but  from  other  causes. 
I  expect  you'll  think  this  sort  of  discourse  a  little  unnatural,  and 
perhaps  may  think  it  discourse  only ;  but  you  may  judge  by  my 
former  letters  and  my  general  manner  of  acting  that  I  oftenest 
speak  as  I  am,  and  that  it  would  not  be  in  this  style  if  I  did  not 
sleep  sound. 


CLARET  FOR  THE  GENERAL   159 

You  are  thrifty  of  your  paper,  pens  and  ink ;  it  is  an 
economy  out  of  tune  :  there's  room  for  a  quarrel  with  you  on  this 
neglect  and  if  Charles  was  not  alive  I  should  be  left  to  con- 
jectures and  somewhat  uncertain  conjectures. 

I  have  been  persuaded  to  take  a  lottery  ticket ;  but,  alas,  I 
am  very  unfortunate  at  all  games,  and  expect  no  better  luck 
here.  'Tis  five  or  six  pounds  very  ill  bestowed.  I  venture  to 
say  that  whatever  money  comes  to  me  it  shall  be  made  use  of, 
and  if  I  don't  succeed  now  or  another  time  the  disappointment 
won't  set  heavily. 

The  death  of  the  Stadtholder,^  and  the  Princess  of  Orange's 
ill  state  of  health,  I  suppose  alarm  people  a  little.  Two  minori- 
ties, perhaps,  together  may  give  the  common  enemy  some 
advantage  over  us.  I  hope  the  Duke  will  do  his  part  steadily 
and  with  honour.  He  has  a  great  task,  and  I  dare  say  will 
perform  it  as  becomes  a  prince. 

If  I  were  to  advise,  as  you  now  live  together  in  the  country, 
you  should  call  some  that  you  like  to  dine  and  sup  with  you 
often ;  and  above  all  things,  claret  for  the  General.  He  is 
never  better  than  when  he  uses  it  freely,  but  without  excess.  It 
is  vast  pleasure  to  me  that  your  new  mansion  is  now  put  into 
good  condition,  and  the  garden  planted.  I  know  nothing  more 
agreeable  than  to  see  our  own  little  improvements  flourish  in 
our  view,  and  increase  every  year  in  strength  and  beauty.^ 

For  my  part,  while  I  am  young  and  in  health  all  the  world  is 
my  garden  and  my  dwelling ;  and  when  I  begin  to  decline,  I 
hope  my  services  by  that  time  may  fairly  ask  some  little  retreat, 
and  a  provision  so  moderate  that  I  may  possess  it  unenvied. 
I  demand  no  more ;  but  while  I  have  vigour,  if  the  country 
wants  a  man  of  good  intentions,  they'll  always  find  me  ready — 
devoted,  I  may  say — to  their  service.  If  my  old  Lady  Lawson 
(as  Charles  has  been  told)  had  stumbled  at  her  time  and  in 
her  situation  I  should  doubt  my  discernment  ever  after ;  she 
appears  to  have  so  much  good  sense  and  affection  for  her 
daughters,  that  to  be  deceived  in  opinion  of  her  I  should  join 
with  FalstafF  and  declare  that  there  is  virtue  extant.  Common 
decency  requires  that  the  young  ladies  should  marry  first. 

1  The  Prince  of  Orange,  George  II's  son-in-law,  died  in  October,  "  killed 
by  the  waters  of  Aix-la-Chapelle,"  said  Walpole. 

2  This  passage  indicates  that  the  garden  of  the  Wolfe  mansion  at  Black- 
heath  was  planted  by  the  elder  Wolfe. 


160    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

The  pretty  widow  Kendal  will  have  more  lovers  now  than 
she  had.  With  the  merit  of  this  vast  succession,  money  is  in 
such  repute  that  though  she  had  a  thousand  good  qualities  and 
a  thousand  graces,  it  was  wanted,  as  the  great  material  to 
recommend  her.  Lord  Bacon  (but  he's  a  severe  writer)  says 
that  if  a  woman  has  a  bad  husband  of  her  own  choosing  she  is 
sure  to  make  good  her  folly,  and  commonly  pretends  more 
happiness  than  she  really  feels.  Is  this  Miss  Wardens  case  ?  Or 
is  she  pleased  with  the  coxcomb,  her  companion  ?  I  pity  her 
heartily  and  pronounce  from  his  manner  of  conducting  himself 
that  she'll  repent  her  bargain.  You'll  see  my  other  reasons  for 
thinking  so  when  I  treat  of  Miss  Hooker's  match.  Though  not 
of  the  most  melting  compassion,  I  am  sometimes  touched  with 
other  people's  distresses  and  participate  their  grief.  Men  whose 
tenderness  is  not  often  called  upon,  obtain  by  degrees, — as  you 
may  particularly  observe  in  old  bachelors, — a  ferocity  of  nature, 
or  insensibility  about  the  misfortunes  that  befall  others.  There's 
no  more  tender-hearted  person  than  a  father  or  mother  that  has, 
or  has  had,  many  children. 

I  don't  know  Dr.  Squire  at  all,  and  very  little  of  Miss 
Hooker,^  but  must  say  that  matches  purely  of  interest  (as  I 
suppose  it  is  on  her  side),  and  made  up  in  a  hurry,  though  with 
everybody's  consent,  are  purchases  too  high  and  hazardous  to 
have  my  approbation.  And  then  again,  at  sober  times,  I  have 
no  very  high  opinion  of  love  affairs  except  they  are  built  upon 
judgment.  So  you'll  say,  "  Where  then  would  you  choose  ? " 
Why  nowhere,  to  men  of  whimsical  disposition  ;  but  otherwise 
the  choice  reason  directs  is  the  best ;  moderate  fortunes  and 
sense  enough  on  both  sides  to  give  aid  in  ticklish  times.  If  the 
maid  only  seeks  preferment  in  the  Church  or  an3rwhere  else,  she 
cuts  out  her  own  misery,  unless  indeed  all  her  passions  and 
affections  give  way  to  ambition,  and  then,  no  doubt,  a  doctor,  a 
dean,  or  a  bishop  have  power  to  please. 

I  have  a  certain  turn  of  mind  that  favours  matrimony  pro- 
digiously, though  every  way  else  extremely  averse  to  it  at 
present,  and  you  shall  know  it.  I  love  children,  and  think  them 
necessary  to  us  in  our  latter  days  ;  they  are  fit  objects  for  the 
mind  to  rest  upon,  and  give  it  great  entertainment  when  amuse- 
ments of  other  kinds  have  lost  their  value.     Sure,  next  to  being 

^  She   subsequently  married  Wolfe's  friend   Charles  Brett,   R.N.     Dr. 
Squire  was  Vicar  of  Greenwich  and  afterwards  Bishop  of  St.  David's. 


MAJOR-GENERAL    JAMES    WuLFE 
From  the  posthumous  portrait  by  Schaak  in  the  National  Portrait  Gallery 


VIEWS   ON  MATRIMONY  161 

an  honest  man  and  good  citizen,  it  is  meritorious  to  produce 
such  characters  amongst  men.  Our  endeavours  here  seldom  fail 
of  success ;  for  young  people  are  as  capable  of  receiving  good 
impressions  and  good  sentiments  as  bad  ones,  and  if  their  nature 
inclines  to  evil,  custom  and  education  correct  them.  Two  or 
three  manly,  courageous,  upright  sons  are  a  present  to  the  world 
of  the  highest  estimation,  and  the  father  that  offers  them  sees 
with  satisfaction  that  he  is  to  live  in  his  successors,  and  that  his 
good  qualities  will  contribute  to  adorn  and  illustrate  manhood 
when  he  is  no  longer  amongst  them.  Is  not  this  a  pleasing  sort 
of  reflection  ?  If  I  don't  speak  much  of  the  females,  'tis  not  that 
they  are  of  less  concern  to  us,  or  ought  to  be  less  prized  ;  but 
as  the  management  of  them  belongs  chiefly  to  you  ladies,  me- 
thinks  I  would  not  seem  to  infringe  upon  your  prerogatives. 

Lord  Bury  professes  fairly,  and  means  nothing ;  in  that  he 
resembles  his  father,  and  a  million  of  other  showy  men  that  are 
seen  in  palaces  and  in  the  courts  of  kings.  He  desires  never  to 
see  his  regiment,  and  wishes  that  no  officer  would  ever  leave  it. 
This  is  selfish  and  unjust.  They  have  a  way  of  trifling  with  us 
poor  soldiery  that  gives  many  very  honest  brave  men  high  dis- 
gust. I  am  sensible  it  is  my  duty  to  be  here,  and  that  silences 
me  ;  otherwise,  the  care  of  a  regiment  of  Foot  is  very  heavy, 
exceeding  troublesome,  and  not  at  all  the  thing  I  delight  in, 
though,  as  I  told  you  before,  the  occupation  in  general  is  a  good 
one,  and  hits  my  genius.  My  duty  to  my  father.  I  wish  you 
both  much  health,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

James  Wolfe. 

Some  of  the  foregoing  will  strike  a  critical  reader  as  penned  in 
a  curiously  stilted  style :  and  in  truth  it  is  not  to  be  denied  that 
Wolfe's  solitude  and  his  reading  of  such  literature  as  came  his  way 
occasionally  gave  his  expressions  an  affected,  artificial  air,  somewhat 
at  variance  with  the  character  of  a  stern  and  sterling  soldier. 
But  this  tends  to  disappear,  and  some  of  his  later  compositions  are 
full  of  directness  and  point. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  Dec.  6th ,  1751. 
Dear  Madam, — If  a  man  is  not  allowed  to  utter  his  com- 
plaints (and  I   deny  myself  this  indulgence)  what  else  can  he 
say,  or  how  can  he  find  subject  of  discourse,  when  his  thoughts 


162    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

are  necessarily  taken  up  with  a  multitude  of  sensations  ?     Not- 
withstanding all  this,  whether  from  pride,  obstinacy,  a  vanity  to 
appear  firm  on  one  side,  or  moderation  and  indifference  of  the 
other,  I  am  determined  to  guard  against  the  inclination  that 
most   people   feel   to  communicate  their  distresses :    and   that 
resolution  arises  from  one  or  other  of  the  above  motives,  or  a 
mixture  of  them  all.     I  learn  that  my  good  friend  Charles  is 
near  his  departure ;  his  friends  and  neighbours  will  feel  the  want 
of  him,  for  there  is  no  more  valuable  person  amongst  men,  than 
one  of  his  character,  active  to  serve  and  assist,  honest  and  fair 
in  his  dealings,  and  incomparably  merry  and  sweet  tempered, 
equally  disposed  for  business  or  society.^     I  reckon  his  sister  will 
be  in  great  grief,  for  she  loves  him  very  sincerely.     If  he  has 
gone  before  this  letter  gets  to  you,  I  must  beg  you  to  let  his 
letter  follow  him,  with  a  frank  if  you  have  one  to  spare,  because 
it  is  double.     I  shall   lose  a  good  correspondent  as  to  public 
affairs,  and  an  agent  and  advocate   to  be  depended  upon  in 
private  concerns.     I  owe  him  one  pound  three,  for  the  eleventh 
portion  of  a  lottery  ticket,^  with  the  young  ladies,  Mr.  Swinden 
and  others,  which,  if  you  will  be  so  kind  to  pay,  (to  him  or  his 
brother)  shall  be  returned  to  you,  whenever  I  have  the  good 
fortune  to  find  myself  in  a  condition  to  pay  my  debts  ;  and  that 
may  soon  be,  since  they  are  not  very  considerable.     The  Duke's 
fall  was  considered  by  people  here  in  very  different  lights,  by 
one  party  as  a  lucky  event,  by  the  other  as  a  most  unfortunate 
one ;  but  we  who  feared  the  consequence  were  far  the  fewest. 
I  hope  he  will  live  long  in  health  and  vigour  and  continue  as  he 
is  at  present,  a  terror  to  traitors  and  the  enemies  of  their  country. 
The  villains  here  seem  to  look  upon  him  as  the  great  opposer  of 
their  purposes,  and  truly  I  believe  they  do  him  justice.     I  beg  my 
duty  to  my  father.    I  wish  you  much  health  and  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

1  Charles  Brett  became  one  of  the  Lords  Commissioners  of  the  Admiralty 
when  Lord  Howe  was  at  the  head  of  the  Boards  and  represented  Sandwich  in 
two  parliaments.  He  married  the  granddaughter  of  Sir  William  Hooker^  of 
Groom's  Hill,  and  died,  far  advanced  in  years,  at  his  house  in  Spring  Gardens, 
February  10th,  1799.  His  brother.  Captain  John  Brett,  who  was  one  of 
Anson's  lieutenants  in  his  voyage  round  the  world,  lost  much  tranquillity,  as 
well  as  money,  by  being  involved  in  a  lawsuit  with  an  itinerant  quack,  whom 
he,  as  a  magistrate,  endeavoured  to  prevent  from  deluding  the  unwary. 
The  mountebank,  however,  having  a  diploma  of  some  sort,  obtained  damages 
against  the  benevolent  Captain.  Another  brother,  Timothy,  is  mentioned  by 
Wolfe  on  a  future  occasion. — Wright,  p.  186. 

^  The  State  Lottery,  drawn  November  11th,  1761. 


HIGHLAND   LADIES  163 

We  now  hear  the  first  of  Wolfe's  projected  Irish  journey. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Inverness,  December  \2th,  1751. 

Dear  Sir, — I  dropped  a  hint  to  Charles  Brett  some  time 
since  as  if  I  had  thoughts  of  going  into  Ireland.  You  may  be 
sure  if  the  thing  had  been  serious  I  should  have  mentioned  it  to 
you,  with  my  reasons  for  so  doing,  and  should  have  asked  your 
opinion  and  taken  it  as  a  guide.  I  did  not  imagine  that  it 
would  have  been  looked  upon  by  Charles  as  a  matter  of  easy 
execution,  but  only  an  object  of  the  fancy  to  play  with  till  some 
new  shadowy  project  as  light  as  that  takes  place.  I  shall  not 
be  very  frequent  in  my  petitions.  Besides,  the  Highland  service 
next  summer  will  be  an  excuse  for  Lord  Bury  to  refuse  me  leave 
of  absence  and  if  that  was  wanting  he  would  easily  frame 
another  as  plausible.  I  have  no  other  motive  to  carry  me  into 
that  country  but  pure  curiosity.  I  have  no  expectations  from 
my  friend  Lord  George.  He  has  already  done  me  more  service 
than  I  had  reason  to  hope  and  he  did  it  unasked.  He  could 
offer  me  nothing  but  the  same  rank  in  the  Horse  or  Dragoons, 
which  is  too  idle  a  life  to  tempt  me. 

I  did  not  tell  you  that  we  have  an  assembly  of  female  rebels 
every  fortnight,  entirely  composed  of  Macdonalds,  Frazers,  and 
M'Intoshes.  I  had  the  honour  to  dance  with  the  daughter  of  a 
chieftain  who  was  killed  at  CuUoden,  the  Laird  of  Kippoch. 
They  are  perfectly  wild  as  the  hills  that  breed  them ;  but  they 
lay  aside  their  principles  for  the  sake  of  sound  and  movement. 
They  make  no  converts,  which  I  chiefly  attribute  to  a  strong 
dialect  of  the  Erse  that  destroys  the  natural  softness  of  their 
notes. 

I  am,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

To  a  man  of  Wolfe''s  temperament,  thrust  into  solitude  and 
addicted  from  boyhood  to  inward  communings,  the  advent  of  a 
birthday  would  easily  set  in  movement  a  train  of  serious  reflec- 
tions. Already  his  mind  had  been  tinged  with  sadness.  He  had 
gone  further  than  most  men  of  his  age,  but  such  progress  had  by 
no  means  kept  pace  with  his  insatiable  ambition,  and  now  the 
prospect  was  not  alluring:  he  must,  as  he  told  his  father,  "be 
content  to  be  a  little  lower  than  Caesar  in  the  list."    The  vanity  of 

M  2 


164    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

human  wishes  oppressed  him.  Thus  on  his  twenty-fifth  birthday, 
alone  in  his  lodgings  at  Inverness,  Wolfe  wrote  down  his  inmost 
thoughts  for  his  mother's  eyes.^ 

Mrs.  Wolfe  was  a  deeply  pious  woman,  and  in  a  previous  letter 
had  urged  him  seek  strength  and  consolation  on  his  knees  before 
his  Maker,  through  faith  in  God. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  22nd-26th  December  (O.S.),  1751. 
\2nd-5th  January  (N.S.),  1752.] 

Dear  Madam, — The  winter  wears  away,  so  do  our  years,  and 
so  does  life  itself ;  and  it  matters  little  where  a  man  passes  his 
days  and  what  station  he  fills,  or  whether  he  be  great  or  con- 
siderable but  it  imports  him  something  to  look  to  his  manner  of 
life.  This  day  I  am  five-and-twenty  years  of  age,  and  all  that 
time  is  as  nothing.  When  I  am  fifty  (if  it  so  happens)  and  look 
back,  it  will  be  the  same  ;  and  so  on  to  the  last  hour.  But  it  is 
worth  a  moment's  consideration  that  one  may  be  called  away  on 
a  sudden,  unguarded  and  unprepared  ;  and  the  oftener  these 
thoughts  are  entertained,  the  less  will  be  the  dread  or  fear  of 
death.  You  will  judge  by  this  sort  of  discourse  that  it  is  the 
dead  of  night,  when  all  is  quiet  and  at  rest,  and  one  of  those 
intervals  wherein  men  think  of  what  they  really  are,  and  what 
they  really  should  be ;  how  much  is  expected,  and  how  little 
performed.  Our  short  duration  here,  and  the  doubts  of  here- 
after, should  awe  and  deter  the  most  flagitious,  if  they  reflected 
on  them.  The  little  time  taken  in  for  meditation  is  the  best 
employed  in  all  their  lives  ;  for  if  the  uncertainty  of  our  state 
and  being  is  then  brought  before  us,  and  that  compared  with 
our  course  of  conduct,  who  is  there  that  won't  immediately 
discover  the  inconsistency  of  all  his  behaviour  and  the  vanity  of 
all  his  pursuits  .?  And  yet,  we  are  so  mixed  and  compounded 
that  though  I  think  seriously  this  minute,  and  lie  down  with 
good  intentions,  it  is  likely  I  may  rise  with  my  old  nature,  or 
perhaps  with  the  addition  of  some  new  impertinence,  and  be  the 
same  wandering  lump  of  idle  errors  that  I  have  ever  been. 

You  certainly  advise  me  well.  You  have  pointed  out  the 
only  one  way  where  there  can  be  no  disappointment,  and 
comfort  that  will  never  fail  us, — carrying  men  steadily  and 
cheerfully  in  their  journey,  and  a  place  of  rest  at   the   end. 

^  '*  It  is  already  past  twelve  o'clock,  and  I  am  tired  and  sleepy.  .  .  . 
This  is  my  birthday.  I  am  now  seven  and  twenty  years  of  age.  What 
an  unprofitable  lout  I  am." — Froude's  Life  ofCarlyle,  p.  171. 


BIRTHDAY   REFLECTIONS         165 

Nobody  can  be  more  persuaded  of  it  than  I  am ;  but  situation, 
example,  the  current  of  things,  and  our  natural  weakness  draw 
me  away  with  the  herd,  and  only  leave  me  just  strength  enough 
to  resist  the  worst  degree  of  our  iniquities.  There  are  times 
when  men  fret  at  trifles,  and  quarrel  with  their  toothpicks.  In 
one  of  these  ill  habits  I  exclaim  against  the  present  condition, 
and  think  it  is  the  worst  of  all ;  but  coolly  and  temperately  it  is 
plainly  the  best.  Where  there  is  most  employment  and  least 
vice,  there  one  should  wish  to  be.  There  is  a  meanness  and  a 
baseness  not  to  endure  with  patience  the  little  inconveniences  we 
are  subject  to;  and  to  know  no  happiness  but  in  one  spot,  and 
that  in  ease,  in  luxury,  in  idleness,  seems  to  deserve  our 
contempt.  There  are  young  amongst  us  that  have  great 
revenues  and  high  military  stations,  that  repine  at  three  months' 
service  with  their  regiments  if  they  go  fifty  miles  from  home. 
Soup  and  venaison  and  turtle  are  their  supreme  delight  and  joy, 
— an  effeminate  race  of  coxcombs,  the  future  leaders  of  our 
armies,  defenders  and  protectors  of  our  great  and  free  nation  ! 

You  bid  me  avoid  Fort  William,  because  you  believe  it  still 
worse  than  this  place.  That  will  not  be  my  reason  for  wishing 
to  avoid  it ;  but  the  change  of  conversation,  the  fear  of  becoming 
a  mere  ruffian,  and  of  imbibing  the  tyrannical  principles  of  an 
absolute  commander,  or  giving  way  insensible  to  the  temptations 
of  power,  till  I  become  proud,  insolent,  and  intolerable  : — these 
considerations  will  make  me  wish  to  leave  the  regiment  before 
the  next  winter,  and  always  (if  it  could  be  so)  after  eight 
months'  duty  ;  that  by  frequenting  men  above  myself  I  may 
know  my  true  condition,  and  by  discom-sing  with  the  other  sex 
may  learn  some  civility  and  mildness  of  carriage,  but  never  pay 
the  price  of  the  last  improvement  with  the  loss  of  reason. 
Better  be  a  savage  of  some  use  than  a  gentle,  amorous  puppy, 
obnoxious  to  all  the  world.  One  of  the  wildest  of  wild  clans  is 
a  worthier  being  than  a  perfect  Philander. 

[He  had  sat  up  composing  this  letter  far  into  the  night. 
Upon  reading  it  in  the  morning  a  profound  disgust  seized  upon 
him  and  he  continued  in  a  wholly  different  strain.] 

I  have  had  a  mind  to  bum  this  letter.  You'll  think  it  too 
grave,  unreasonably  so  ;  or  you  may  suspect  I  play  the  hypocrite, 
with  design  to  lead  you  into  an  opinion  of  our  reformation. 
Charles  has  bought  me  a  French  translation  of  Thucydides,  and 
has  not  been  paid.     I  wish  you  would  desire  my  father  to  lay 


166     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

down  the  money  for  me  till  we  meet.  It  is  a  most  incomparable 
book.  I  wish  I  may  get  £^0,  to  pay  these  little  incumbrances ; 
anything  more  would  be  unreasonable  to  expect. 

It  is  said  that  Lafausille  is  preparing  to  publish  a  new 
treatise  of  Discipline  and  Reflections  upon  the  Government  of 
Armies.  I  hope  Loftus  will  add  his  Notes  and  Remarks,  for  the 
amusement  of  the  public  and  great  diversion  of  all  his  acquaint- 
ance. There  is  already  so  much  nonsense  upon  this  subject,  and 
it  is  in  itself  so  barren  and  dry  (in  the  manner  it  is  commonly 
treated),  that  I  wonder  at  any  attempt  of  the  kind.  Lord 
Molesworth  and  General  Kane — two  very  accurate  writers — have 
expressed  their  thoughts  in  a  very  pretty,  concise  discourse,  to 
the  great  advantage  and  improvement  of  those  persons  for  whom 
they  were  intended.  These  are  the  patterns  for  my  brother 
lieutenant-colonel  to  imitate.  Perhaps  you'll  imagine  that  this 
is  all  ill-nature  in  me,  and  that  I  envy  him  the  reputation  which 
must  follow  his  labours.  Upon  my  word,  I  do  not ;  but  I  could 
wish  that  he  could  be  contented  with  his  share  of  fame.  To 
speak  fairly,  I  don't  believe  what  I  have  heard,  from  my  opinion 
of  my  friend's  moderation. 

Mrs.  In  wood's  great  vivacity  and  great  good-nature  make 
her  an  excellent  winter  companion.  She  is  very  well  in  all 
seasons,  but  particularly  in  cold  weather;  her  lively  discourse 
in  December  makes  some  amends  for  her  inactivity  in  May. 
One  thing  grieves  me,  that  you  must  necessarily  keep  house 
while  she  stays ;  for  I  think  I  have  heard  you  say  that  her  wind 
won't  last  her  a  hundred  yards,  and  that  her  action  soon  fails. 
If  you  will  do  me  the  favour  to  present  my  compliments  to  her, 
and  assure  her  that  I  do  not  rozvll  about  the  room  now,  nor  am 
I  in  that  desperate  condition  that  she  has  seen  and  known,  and 
laughed  at !  I  was  shamefully  beat  at  chess  by  a  Scotch  laird 
about  five  months  ago  ;  this  has  put  me  out  of  conceit  of  my 
own  play.  I  must  again  become  a  scholar  under  Mrs.  In  wood, 
to  make  me  attentive  to  the  game  and  teach  me  to  think.  I 
beg  my  duty  to  my  father,  and  am. 

Dear  Madam,  etc., 

James  Wolfe. 

Wolfe  by  no  means  discontinued  his  studies  at  Inverness. 
Realizing  the  importance  of  mathematics  he  engaged  a  Mr.  Barbour, 
who,  like  Dr.  Samuel  Johnson,  "kept  a  schule  and  ca'd  it  an 
Acaademy,"  and  who  enjoyed  much  local  repute  as  a  mathematician. 


REGIMENTAL    PIETY  167 

to  continue  him  in  principles  of  Algebra  and  Geometry.  The 
Lieutenant-Colonel  thus  humorously  describes  the  effect  of  his 
renewed  studies. 


To  HIS  Father. 

Inverness,  12th  January,  1752. 
Dear  Sir, — I  have  read  the  mathematics  till  I  am  grown 
perfectly  stupid,  and  have  algebraically  worked  away  the  little 
portion  of  understanding  that  was  allowed  to  me.  They  have 
not  even  left  me  the  qualities  of  a  coxcomb  ;  for  I  can  neither 
laugh  nor  sing,  nor  talk  an  hour  upon  nothing.  The  latter  of 
these  is  a  sensible  loss,  for  it  excludes  a  gentleman  from  all  good 
company,  and  makes  him  entirely  unfit  for  the  conversation  of 
the  polite  world.  However,  a  man  may  make  a  neighbourlike 
appearance  in  this  cold  region  with  a  moderate  competency  of 
knowledge,  and  with  a  degree  of  gravity  that  may  supply  the 
deficiency.  And  whoever  goes  to  kirk  (as  I  do)  once  a  week, 
and  there  comports  himself  with  more  reverence  to  the  priest 
than  consideration  for  the  nature  of  the  business — herein  I 
sometimes  fail — will  most  assuredly  and  deservedly  obtain  the 
reputation  of  great  wisdom  and  discretion.  We  are  allowed  to 
be  the  most  religious  foot  officers  that  have  been  seen  in  the 
North  for  many  a  day,  and  some  words  are  thrown  away  every 
Sunday  in  prayers  for  our  amendment  and  exemplary  life  and 
conversation.  See  the  variety  and  constant  change  of  things : 
in  most  of  our  quarters  we  have  been  looked  upon  no  better 
than  as  the  sons  of  darkness,  and  given  up  unto  Satan ;  here  we 
are  white  as  the  snow  that  cover  all  the  hills  about, — not  from 
want  of  temptation  to  sin,  you  may  believe,  but  from  sudden 
conversion  and  power  to  resist. 

My  uncle  Wat  has  given  over  corresponding  with  me, — at 
least  I  imagine  so.  I  believe  we  don'*t  agree  in  our  system  of 
military  affairs,  and  therefore  he  drops  me,  as  an  innovator  in 
discipline.  I  hear  he  is  very  well.  Mr.  Fisher  is  empowered  to 
do  prodigious  things  with  my  prize  in  the  lottery  ;  amongst  the 
rest  he  will  pay  for  my  French  Thucydides — our  historian — I 
speak  as  a  soldier.  I  am  thinking  what  a  noble  balance  there 
will  be  on  my  side  when  our  accounts  are  settled !  I  beg  my 
duty  to  my  mother,  and  am, 

Dear  Sir,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


168    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

There  are  worse — and  less  appropriate — ways  of  disbursing  a 
prize  won  in  a  lottery  than  by  purchasing  the  volumes  of  Voltaire. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  Jan.  24tth  (O.S.),  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — I  don't  always  understand  myself  and  can't 
therefore  wonder  that  I  am  sometimes  unintelligible  to  others. 
However,  I  don't  mean  to  be  obscure  in  my  discourse  to  you,  and 
so  my  words  generally  bear  the  sense  that  they  are  most  usually 
taken  in ;  their  common  acceptation — when  this  is  not  the  case, 
and  the  meaning  not  plain,  pray  be  so  good  to  burn  the  letter. 
I  think  your  hardest  task  will  be  to  make  out  the  words.  If  I 
did  not  know  the  best  part  of  what  I  had  writ  it  would  be  some- 
times difficult  to  read  my  own  writing.  I  am  quite  sensible  that 
you  are  nohow  concerned  in  military  affairs,  and  have  given  me 
no  positive  orders  to  reside  here,  or  there ;  nor  are  you  the  cause 
of  any  evil  that  falls  upon  me ;  so  I  repent  me  much,  if  words 
have  dropped  from  me  that  are  unpleasant  and  unsuitable — or 
seem  to  proceed  from  a  restless  and  fretful  temper  inconsistent 
with  the  regard  due  to  your  peace  which  I  should  be  sorry  to 
disturb  for  myself.  I  do  not  know  what  demon  possessed  me  at 
that  unlucky  hour ;  but  I  have  never  known  my  thoughts  less 
confused  than  of  late,  and  easy  stupidity  and  insensibility  seems 
to  have  crept  into  me ;  and  does  the  part  of  reason  in  keeping 
the  vessel  steady,  with  prodigious  success.  It  is  so  pleasing  a 
state  that  I  prefer  it  to  any  conceit  that  the  fancy  can  produce, 
any  whirlwind  of  the  brain,  or  violent  chase  after  nothing — the 
one  goes  slowly,  sedately,  and  heavily,  the  other  distractedly  to 
the  same  end.  That  I  am  still  here,  is  a  proof  that  you  have  no 
power  to  remove  me — but  you  may  be  assured  by  way  of 
comfort,  that  I  can  sleep  through  any  mischance  and  dose  away 
all  my  complaints. 

So  may  fine  people  concurring  in  the  same  views  and  dis- 
appointed at  last;  a  union  so  well  suited,  that  they  justly 
obtain  the  name  of  agreeable,  and  get  their  ticket  a  blank — is  a 
flagrant  proof  that  these  matters  are  wholly  governed  by  chance 
and  accident,  and  no  sort  of  regard  is  had  to  the  just  pretensions 
of  the  select  few :  Are  all  your's  blank  ?  There  are  thousands 
in  the  same  case,  that  can  less  afford  the  loss — I  think  it  is  very 
good  in  you  to  contribute  so  much  to  the  public  expenses.  I 
hope  when  your  houses  are  sold,  you  will  be  enabled  to  do  more, 
and  help  to  maintain  the  army  and  the  fleet. 


MORDAUNT'S   FRIENDSHIP         169 

Charles  says,  there's  thirty  sail,  in  the  harbour  at  Plymouth. 
I  got  a  letter  from  little  Rickson  the  other  day,  who  never 
forgets  to  make  grateful  mention  of  the  civility  he  received  from 
my  father  and  you,  and  to  offer  his  respects ;  he  languishes  and 
sighs  for  his  native  country ;  though  the  affairs  of  that  province 
are  in  a  better  way  than  formerly.  Parry  assures  me  that  he  \vill 
send  some  shells  to  Mr.  Fisher  by  the  first  ship  that  goes  from 
Edinburgh  and  he  makes  me  believe  that  Major  Innes  will  send 
sixty  or  seventy  pounds  of  Minorcan  honey  from  port  Mahon 
as  quick  as  possible.  I  am  sure  the  jar  you  were  so  kind  as  to 
give  me,  has,  and  continues  to  be  of  great  service,  I  can't  be  too 
thankful  for  such  a  favour. 

What  hinders  you  from  meeting  as  usual  ?  I  hope  your 
parties  are  not  so  scattered  but  you  may  collect  again.  The 
dull  winter  hours  require  some  dissipation,  people  want  to  be 
enhvened  in  such  a  dead  season. 

Mrs.  Wilmot  is  the  oldest  of  all  my  old  friends  and  acquaint- 
ance, and  I  never  see  her  but  with  great  pleasure,  and  love  to 
hear  her  name  mentioned — is  she  as  merry  as  heretofore  ?  does 
she  laugh  away  all  her  life  ?  I  hope  her  good  humour  will  never 
forsake  her.  I  have  recovered  my  hearing,  within  these  three 
weeks — a  month  ago  I  could  not  hear  my  watch  strike  with  the 
right  ear,  and  it  has  been  so  ever  since  I  left  London ;  exercise 
and  temperance  have  brought  this  about,  and  will  do  the  rest  in 
time.  I  am  pleased  to  know  that  you  are  both  in  health — I  beg 
my  duty  to  my  father  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 

Greenwich,  Kent,  Sth.  Britain. 

His  absence  in  the  Highlands  had  not  caused  his  influential 
friends  to  forget  him.  His  inamorata's  uncle.  Sir  John  Mordaunt, 
tried  to  get  him  an  appointment  as  aide-de-camp,  fearing  that  a  too 
long  expatriation  might  put  the  young  officer  out  of  the  lists  of 
preferment,  but  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  had  other  views  and  the 
application  was  refused.  Wolfe  was  not  sorry,  as  the  following 
letter  shows. 

To  HIS  Father. 

February  1st,  1752. 

Dear  Sir, — I  told  you  my  reasons  why  I  thought  there  was 
nothing  to  be  expected  in  Ireland  before  I  knew  your  sentiments 


170    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

on  that  subject.  I  may  add  that  as  Lord  George  did  not  seem 
to  hearken  to  what  was  dropped  [relative  to  the  aide-de-camp's 
employ]  last  winter  in  London,  it  is  not  very  probable  he  has 
changed  his  opinion. 

It  is,  no  doubt,  a  ready  road  to  recommendation  and  prefer- 
ment, if  a  man  acquits  himself  as  he  ought ;  but  to  speak  truly  I 
am  by  no  means  calculated  for  an  office  of  that  kind,  upon 
several  accounts,  and  therefore  don't  grieve  much  at  the 
refusal,  though  not  the  less  obliged  to  Sir  John  for  proposing 
it.  While  I  do  serve  I  do  not  wish  to  be  out  of  my 
character,  nor  receive  my  pay  in  idleness. 

The  snow  begins  to  melt,  so  that  the  roads  and  rivers 
will  be  for  a  while  impassable.  There  are  some  rapid  rivers 
in  this  country  that  have  neither  bridge  or  boat,  upon  the 
highway  from  Inverness  to  Edinburgh,  so  that  when  a  quantity 
of  water  falls  from  the  mountains,  the  post  and  passengers 
are  retarded  till  it  runs  off.  We  had  no  other  way  of 
distinguishing  Christmas  than  that  we  found  it,  as  it 
commonly  is,  the  coldest  time  of  the  year,  and  made  a  larger 
fire  than  usual,  and  ate  exceeding  bad  mince-pies  that  our 
sutler's  wife,  who  is  a  very  religious  woman,  begged  we  might 
taste.  .  .  .  The  spring  that  gives  a  new  face  to  the  whole 
creation,  will  enliven  us  all. 

I  am,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  Feb.  lUh,  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — It  is  very  pleasing  to  me,  to  know  that  our 
sentiments  agree,  let  the  subject  be  what  it  will ;  but  I  should 
be  much  better  satisfied,  if  all  the  actions  of  my  life  were  such  as 
you  would  approve  of;  for,  it  is  evident,  that  our  words  are  no 
proof  of  good  conduct :  they  don't  always  express  our  thoughts  ; 
but,  what  a  man  does  may  be  depended  upon,  and  is  the  true 
measure  of  his  worth.  The  lady  you  mentioned  is  very  fair  of 
speech,  and  yet  you  see  how  little  to  be  trusted  to  in  other 
respects,  and  how  subtle.  I  have  formerly  observed  her  dis- 
position, (but  not  so  accurately  as  I  might  have  done)  and  did 
not  always  like  the  appearences  as  they  struck  me  ;  but,  I  saw 
how  deeply  Charles  was  involved,  and  therefore  forebore  to 
speak  too  freely,  that  I  might  not  torment  him ;  the  way  she 
treated  him,  would  have  opened  the  eyes  of  a   less   amorous 


MATRIMONIAL   PROSPECTS        171 

gallant,  and  turned  his  love  and  admiration  into  perfect  con- 
tempt. I  hope  however  that  you  have  not  divulged  what  she 
was  pleased  to  say  of  me,  in  obedience  to  her  mother ;  for  these 
reasons,  that  it  will  do  her  an  irreparable  injury  ;  and  if  it 
should  reach  Charles's  ear,  will  give  him  pain  ;  I  dare  say  these 
considerations  have  had  their  just  weight  with  you.  As  you 
foretold,  Mr.  Swinden  has  written  to  remind  me  of  my  promise, 
I  only  stand  engaged  in  case  a  boy  comes  forth,  and  I  recom- 
mend my  little  godson  to  your  kindness,  if  it  so  happens ;  and 
my  expense  shall  be  repaid  you,  when  the  arrears  come  in.^  I 
did  not  know  the  price  of  the  books,  but  Miss  Brett  will  be 
soon  informed  of  that.  We  are  not  enough  acquainted  with  our- 
selves to  determine  our  future  conduct,  nor  can  any  man  foresee 
what  shall  happen — but  as  far  as  one  may  hazard  a  conjecture — 
there  is  a  great  probability  that  I  shall  never  marry.  I  shall 
hardly  engage  in  an  affair  of  that  nature  purely  for  money : 
nor  do  I  believe  that  my  infatuation  will  ever  be  strong 
enough  to  persuade  me,  that  people  can  live  without  it : 
besides,  unless  there  be  violence  done  to  my  inclinations,  by  the 
power  of  some  gentle  nymph,  I  had  much  rather  listen  to  the 
drum  and  trumpet  than  any  softer  sound  whatever.  Fisher  gave 
me  early  notice  of  my  prize — but  alas,  that  does  not  make  me 
amends  for  a  horse  that  I  lost  in  the  beginning  of  the  winter  by 
the  neglect  of  the  keeper — a  beast  that  cost  me  five  and  twenty 
pounds,  though  he  was  not  worth  half  the  money. 

Loftus  has  always  been  an  old  fashioned  coxcomb — a  tawdry 
kind  of  beau.  I  suppose  he  would  dress  the  regiment  in  his  own 
taste ;  he's  one  of  those  people  who  think  there  can't  be  too 
much  finery,  no  matter  where  'tis  stuck. 

Miss  Brett's  kindness  for  her  brother  cannot  be  enough 
admired ;  he  is  going  to  a  strange  place,  and  she  is  resolved 
he  shall  want  for  nothing.  Charles  is  in  reputation  for 
chastity,  so  she  may  be  sure  the  girls  (though  they  are 
handsome)  will  be  quite  safe  with  him.  I  have  just  now  received 
a  letter  from  my  uncle  Walter — he  enquires  after  my  father 
and  you,  and  seems  concerned  that  he  has  not  heard  from 
either  for    a   long    while.      I    hope   you   will    succeed    in  the 

^  This  godson  did  not  survive.  Mrs.  Wolfe  bequeathed  £500  to  Susannah, 
daughter  of  the  Rev.  S.  F.  Swinden  ;  but  no  son  of  his  is  mentioned  in  her 
will.  Wolfe  was  godfather  to  many  other  boys,  amongst  whom  was  the  late 
Lord  Cringletie,  son  of  Lieut. -Colonel  Murray,  and  father  of  James  Wolfe 
Murray,  Esq.,  who  has  three  sons,  all  of  whom  bear  the  name  of  "  Wolfe." 
Wright,  1864. — One  of  these  sons  is  Sir  James  Wolfe  Murray. 


172    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

management  of  all  your  London  affairs,  that  you  may  have 
an  end  to  such  unpleasant  business.  My  washer-woman  says 
she  thinks  I  shall  hold  out  till  next  autumn  with  her 
assistance :  she  has  promised  to  keep  everything  very  tight, 
and  if  she's  as  good  as  her  word,  it  will  save  you  the  trouble 
of  sending  any  new  linen.  My  compliments  to  Mrs.  Inwood 
and  to  Miss  Brett.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father,  and  am,  dear 
Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Greenwich. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  6^^  March^  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — ^The  greatest  pleasure  your  letters  can 
give  me  is  to  know  that  you  are  both  in  good  health,  and, 
consequently,  in  the  enjoyment  of  every  good  that  follows  it. 
If  I  could  be  always  well  assured  of  that,  I  should  not  insist 
any  further,  but  leave  it  to  any  moment  of  your  leisure  to 
treat  of  light  matters.  An  empty  house  is  a  very  burdensome 
possession,  and  you  are  happy  that  you  have  got  rid  of  yours,^ 
if  there  was  no  other  reason  than  that  it  eases  your  mind  of 
an  encumbrance  otherwise  not  easily  shaken  off;  for  as  we 
accustom  ourselves  from  infancy  to  measure  our  real  good  by 
the  condition  of  our  little  affairs,  and  do  often  place  our 
happiness  or  misery  in  6pinion,  and  the  comparing  our  situation 
with  that  of  other  people,  we  are  apt  to  torment  ourselves  with 
crosses  and  accidents  much  more  than  their  nature  deserves. 
This  leads  one  to  a  conclusion  that  perhaps  there  is  a  possibility 
of  going  through  the  business  of  the  world  without  any  strong 
connection  or  attachment  or  anything  that  is  in  it,  and  with  a 
kind  of  indifference  as  to  what  happens.  The  danger  of  this 
indifference  is,  that  in  time  it  may  turn  to  dislike,  and,  unless 
reasonably  curbed,  may  influence  our  conduct,  and  make  us  fall 
out  with  ourselves,  which  of  all  quarrels  is  the  most  dangerous, 
and  the  most  difficult  to  reconcile.  But,  sure,  every  man  of 
common  sense  will  discover  beauty  and  virtue  enough  to  keep 
him  in  good  temper  ;  and  if  not,  he  will  try  to  possess  himself  of 
magnanimity  to  resist  evil,  and  a  certain  portion  of  benevolence 
that  shall  incline  him  to  think  charitably  of  what  is  due  to  the 
crowd. 

1  The  Greenwich  house  was  sold. 


MRS.    FORBES  173 

I  have  lately  fallen  into  the  acquaintance  (by  mere  chance) 
of  two  young  Scotch  ladies,  with  whose  conversation  I  am  infinitely 
delighted.  They  are  birds  of  a  fine  feather,  and  very  rare  in  this 
country.  One  of  them  is  a  wife,  the  other  a  maid.  The  former 
has  the  strongest  understanding,  the  other  has  the  prettiest  face  ; 
but  as  I  am  not  disposed  to  become  the  slave  of  either,  the 
matron  stands  first.  I  mention  this  circumstance  to  clear  up  all 
doubt  that  might  arise  from  the  subject,  and  I  speak  of  these 
ladies  to  show  that  we  should  not  despair,  and  that  some  satis- 
faction may  be  found  even  where  it  is  least  expected. 

Lord  George  is  the  man  of  all  my  acquaintance  that  I  most 
wish  to  see  married  :  he  has  the  necessary  qualifications  of  riches 
(for  we  must  put  that  first),  honour,  prudence  and  good  temper, 
and  is  come  to  years  of  discretion,  as  it  is  called. 

Lord  Bury  comes  down  in  April ;  hell  stay  six  weeks,  and 
then  swear  there's  no  enduring  it  any  longer,  and  beg  leave 
to  return.  "  Wolfe,  you'll  stay  in  the  Highlands ;  you  can't 
with  any  face,  ask  to  quit  the  regiment  so  dispersed ;  and  when 
you  have  clothed  and  sent  them  to  their  different  quarters,  to- 
wards the  end  of  November  you  shall  come  to  London,  my  dear 
friend,  for  three  months."  This  will  be  his  discourse,  and  I  must 
say,  "  My  Lord,  you  are  very  kind  ! "  Here  are  people  that 
remember  to  have  seen  my  father  at  Fort  William.  I  never 
heard  him  mention  that.  Perhaps  he  has  been  silent  because 
there  is  a  circumstance  attending  it  that  does  him  honour.  Of 
all  men  upon  earth,  I  believe  he  speaks  the  least  in  his  own 
praise,  and  that's  the  reason  why  I  never  expect  to  see  his  name 
in  the  Gazette,     I  am,  etc.,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


^'  There  is  good  reason  to  conclude,"  observes  Wright,^  "  that 
the  '  matron '  alluded  to  above  was  Mrs.  Forbes,  wife  of  John,  only 
son  of  the  famous  Lord  President.  It  will  be  seen  that  Wolfe 
entertained  a  high  regard  for  that  lady,  concerning  whose  health 
he  frequently  inquires  after  he  left  Scotland.  It  is  much  more 
pleasing  to  look  upon  the  old  historic  house  as  the  scene  of  Mrs. 
Forbes's  genial  hospitality  towards  the  as  yet  comparatively 
undistinguished  officer,  than  as  the  temporary  abode  of  the  young 
Chevalier  and  of  his  successful  rival  before  and  after  the  bloody 
battle  that  terminated  the  rebellion." 

1  Ufe,  p.  198. 


174    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  HIS  Father. 

Inverness,  2{)th  March,  1752, 

Dear  Sir, — The  meeting  of  the  whole  regiment  and  Lord 
Bury's  presence  will  put  me  to  the  necessity  of  changing  my 
manner  of  living,  and  if  I  don't  acquire  more  knowledge  I  shall 
certainly  get  more  health  by  the  change.  I  have  already 
mentioned  what  kind  of  weather  and  how  severe  a  winter  we 
have  had,  and  when  I  add  the  impossibility  of  stirring  out  of  the 
town  and  the  difficulty  of  finding  a  conversible  fit  companion  in 
it,  you  may  believe  that  my  long  confinement  has  perhaps  been 
more  from  necessity  than  choice.  I  can't  drink  nor  play  without 
the  fear  of  destroying  the  officers,  and  some  of  them  are  already 
but  too  much  inclined  to  that  ruinous  and  disastrous  vice. 

It  will  be  in  the  middle  of  May  before  we  are  reviewed,  and 
near  the  latter  end  when  we  send  out  our  Highland  detachment. 
June  is  everywhere  a  pleasant  month,  and  in  July  we  may  begin 
to  shoot.  Lord  Bury  likes  his  diversion,  and  so  do  I.  Hell 
keep  me  to  carry  his  powder  horn  and  flints ;  we  shall  ramble 
from  post  to  post  till  he's  tired  and  goes  off*,  and  then  I  shall 
retreat  into  Fort  William  and  remain  there  until  further  orders. 
Years  roll  on  in  this  way,  and  are  (unluckily  for  us)  never  to  be 
recalled.  Our  friends  forget  us  ;  we  grow  rustic,  hard-tempered 
and  severe,  and  insensibly  fall  into  a  course  of  thought  and 
action  that  is  more  readily  observed  than  corrected.  We  use  a 
very  dangerous  freedom  and  looseness  of  speech  amongst  our- 
selves ;  this  by  degrees  makes  wickedness  and  debauchery  less 
odious  than  it  should  be,  if  not  familiar,  and  sets  truth,  religion 
and  virtue  at  a  great  distance.  I  hear  things  every  day  said 
that  would  shock  your  ears,  and  often  say  things  myself  that  are 
not  fit  to  be  repeated,  perhaps  without  any  ill  intention,  but 
merely  by  the  force  of  custom.  The  best  that  can  be  offered  in 
our  defence  is,  that  some  of  us  see  the  evil  and  wish  to  avoid  it. 

I  have  shut  my  books  and  am  every  fair  day  on  horse- 
back. I  am  sorry  you  have  entirely  given  up  that  sort  of 
exercise,  because  it  is,  beyond  all  dispute,  the  best.  I  hope  you 
are  persuaded  that  motion  of  some  kind  or  other  is  necessary  to 
your  health.  I  take  the  freedom  to  put  you  in  mind  of  it,  be- 
cause you  seem  sometimes  less  solicitous  about  it  than  it  really 
deserves.  My  mother  suffers  when  you  do,  so  that  I  am  doubly 
interested  in  your  welfare.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother,  and 
am,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


BURY'S    CHARACTER  175 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Inverness,  April  10th,  1752. 
Dear  Madam, — However  I  may  be  disposed  of,  you  may 
be  secure  and  satisfied  that  I  shall  in  all  things  consider  my 
condition ;  shall  bear  any  ill-treatment  with  patience  and 
fortitude,  and  must  always  think  that  he  who  has  lost  his 
liberty,  or  was  never  free,  has  nothing  worth  contending  for.  If 
it  was  left  to  my  choice,  I  should  run  away  to  the  Austrian  camp 
at  Luxembourg,  or  to  the  French  army  in  Lorraine;  for  I 
don't  think  myself  quite  secure  in  England,  and  my  course  of 
thought  leads  me  to  shun  danger  and  seek  improvement. 

The  Lieutenant-Colonel  you  speak  of  (I  suppose  you  mean 
Aldercron)  is  near  the  top  of  our  list ;  he  has  been  strongly 
recommended  from  Ireland,  with  the  title  of  long  service  to 
support  the  recommendation.^  My  success  in  that  way  depends 
upon  events  not  to  be  wished  or  hoped  for.  I  can  only  rise 
in  war,  by  my  willingness  to  engage  in  it.  In  these  cooler 
times  the  parliamentary  interest  and  weight  of  particular 
families  annihilates  all  other  pretentions  ;  when  I  am  amongst 
the  youngest  of  my  own  rank,  and  have  had  as  great  favoui* 
shown  me  as  I  could  modestly  expect.  Don''t  believe  that  I 
am  insensible  of  your  aflPectionate  concern  and  my  father''s  in  the 
matter ;  I  know  well  from  whence  it  flows,  and  that  know- 
ledge will  help  me  to  bear  little  afflictions  without  wavering 
or  repining ;  for  I  know  no  better  reason  to  be  contented  than 
that  you  wish  it,  and  when  I'm  not  truly  satisfied  I'll  endeavour 
to  appear  so.  I  must  send  off  my  books  and  recommend  them 
to  your  care;  the  weight  grows  too  considerable  for  long 
journeys,  and  a  few  well  chosen  is  a  great  library  for  a  soldier. 

I  am,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Lord  Bury  appears  to  have  been  a  somewhat  difficult  personage. 
It  was  in  the  highest  degree  improbable  that  two  natures  so 
diametrically  opposed  could  work  together  without  discomfort  to 
at  least  one  of  them.  Bury  was  but  little  Wolfe's  senior,  but  he 
was  the  son  of  a  lord  and  heir  to  an  earldom.     He  was  arbitrary 

1  Lieut. -Colonel  John  Aldercron,  of  the  7th  Foot,  succeeded  to  the 
colonelcy  of  Richheir s—^Q\h  (East  Middlesex)  in  March  1752.  Early  in 
1754  he  embarked  for  Madras  with  his  regiment, — "  Primus  in  Indis" — and 
was  nominated  Commander-in-Chief  in  India.  He  became  a  Lieut. -General 
in  1760,  and  died  in  July  1766.— Wright. 


176    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

and  capricious.  Wolfe  was  conscious  that  Lord  Bury,  who  had  the 
ear  of  the  Commander-in-Chief,  perpetually  stood  in  his  way,  and 
there  were  times  when  he  felt  an  inclination  to  cut  and  run  from  it 
all.  He  was  not  a  peace  soldier.  If  he  was  to  rise  very  high  it 
must  be  through  active  service,  and  active  service  was  not  to  be 
had  in  the  Highlands  of  Scotland. 

An  illustration  of  his  Colonel's  temper  was  furnished  when  Bury 
finally  joined  his  regiment.  To  find  an  instance  of  such  a  want  of 
tact  would  be  to  ransack  history  indeed.  Wolfe's  manners  and 
the  behaviour  that  he  had  inculcated  upon  his  men  had  almost 
entirely  removed  the  aversion  which  the  town  of  Inverness  and  the 
surrounding  inhabitants  had  first  felt  for  the  soldiery.  The  latter 
had  even  grown  popular.  On  the  arrival  of  Bary  on  April  13 
the  Provost  and  Councillors  requested  his  presence  at  a  celebration 
of  the  Duke  of  Cumberland's  birthday.  Bury  observed  that  he  was 
delighted  to  find  the  inhabitants  of  Inverness  so  loyal.  But  he 
believed  that  there  was  another  occasion  at  hand  whose  cele- 
bration would  give  his  Royal  Highness  even  greater  pleasure.  This 
was  the  anniversary  of  the  Battle  of  Culloden.  Consternation 
appeared  upon  the  faces  of  the  deputation ;  they  retired  saying 
that  they  would  consult  their  colleagues.  From  men  with  a 
particle  of  manhood,  a  tame  acquiescence  in  such  a  suggestion  could 
hardly  be  expected.  They  declined  to  celebrate  the  fall  of  their 
sons,  brothers  and  kinsmen,  and  a  further  deputation  waited  upon 
Bury  with  an  answer  to  this  effect.  Bury's  retort  was  to  threaten 
them  with  a  military  outbreak  as  a  result  of  the  disappointment 
his  soldiers  would  feel.  This  frightened  the  poor  Provost  and 
deputation  into  compliance ;  but  what  the  Lieutenant-Colonel 
must  have  thought  of  the  tactlessness  of  such  a  proceeding  can 
best  be  conjectured.  It  is  safe  to  say  he  took  no  part  in  this 
impolitic  celebration  of  the  Battle  of  Culloden. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Inverness^  April  2Srd,  1752. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  awakened  from  a  state  of  indolence  and 
inactivity  by  the  recollection  of  what  is  due  to  you. 

This  is  the  first  letter  that  I  have  penned  since  Lord  Bury 
came  here.  His  Lordship  pays  my  attendance  upon  him  with 
fair  words  and  promises ;  and  he  thinks  it  highly  reasonable  that 
my  long  confinement  should  have  an  end,  though  he  is  far  from 
being  sure  of  the  Duke's  consent.  I  tell  him  the  matter  of  fact, 
that  when  I  feel  any  extraordinary  restraint,  and  am  kept  longer 


FORT  AUGUSTUS  177 

with  the  regiment  than  is  equitable,  I  hate  the  sight  of  a  soldier  ; 
have,  nevertheless,  too  much  niceness  to  neglect  the  service,  and 
too  much  indifference,  as  to  reputation  and  applause,  to  exert 
myself  to  any  high  degree.  Some  of  these  young  men  have 
borrowed  their  notions  of  arms,  and  the  people  that  compose 
them,  from  neighboiu*ing  nations,  and  seem  of  opinion  that  a 
stupid  kind  of  obedience  and  conformity  to  their  will  supplies 
the  want  of  military  virtue  and  ability. 

Fifteen  companies  of  Foot  are  to  work  this  summer  at  the 
new  fort. 

I  am,  etc., 
J.  Wolfe. 

The  longest  winter  wears  away  at  last,  and  Wolfe's  departure 
from  Inverness  drew  near.  He  had  now  the  prospect  of  leave  of 
absence  at  a  favoui'able  season  of  the  year,  and  he  determined  to 
take  advantage  of  it.  If  he  could  not  leave  the  kingdom  he  could 
at  least  go  to  Ireland,  and  for  Ireland  Wolfe  always  cherished 
a  warm  affection.  Early  in  May,  he  bade  a  final  farewell  to  his 
friends  in  Inverness.  He  had  still  a  term  to  fulfil  at  Fort 
Augustus,  before  he  could  set  out  on  his  travels. 

Fort  Augustus  has  been  made  familiar  to  us  through  the 
Highland  journey  of  Dr.  Johnson. 

To    HIS    MOTHEE. 

Inverness,  IQth  May,  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — ^The  best  return  I  can  make  for  your  kind 
inquiry  and  care  about  my  health  is  to  inform  you,  as  quickly 
as  possible,  that  I  am  extremely  well,  much  better  than  I  have 
been  since  I  came  last  to  Scotland.  I  wish  you  would 
always  entertain  yourself  with  cheerful  thoughts,  believe  your 
friends  as  you  desire  they  should  be,  and  put  off  your  concern 
till  you  are  convinced  of  the  contrary.  Though  I  would  not 
willingly  be  forgot,  nor  even  remembered  with  indifference,  yet, 
rather  than  disturb  your  peace  and  felicity,  I  should  be  content 
to  be  not  much  thought  of.  Half  of  our  misery  arises  from 
self-tormenting  imaginations.  The  apprehension  and  dread  of 
evil  is  the  greatest  of  our  misfortunes  in  this  life.  Take  away 
the  mischiefs  that  the  fancy  suggests,  and  it  will  considerably 
lighten  our  burden. 

Lord  Bury  first  advised  me  not  to  ask  leave  of  absence,  but 
afterwards  he  changed  his  opinion.     I  have  reason  to  think  that 


178    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

it  will  not  be  refused.  My  curiosity  and  the  necessity  of  riding 
about  will  put  me  upon  undertaking  a  very  long  journey.  I 
find  that  a  sedentary  life  is  a  very  dangerous  one,  and  therefore 
propose  this  new  plan  by  way  of  trial,  and  to  refresh  and  amuse 
myself.  At  the  end  of  this  tour  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of 
seeing  my  father  and  you,  and  if  I  find  you  in  health  I  shall 
find  what  I  most  wish  for. 

Teeth  are  valuable  from  their  great  use  ;  the  other  day  I 
broke  a  fine  large  one  all  to  pieces.  At  Paris  they  put  in 
artificial  teeth  that  are  every  way  as  serviceable  as  the  natural 
ones,  and  perhaps  they  may  do  the  same  in  London.  I  see  no 
harm  in  repairing  any  loss  of  this  kind,  as  we  really  can"'t  eat  or 
speak  properly  without  them.  Don''t  let  accidents  of  this  kind 
disturb  you  a  moment ;  there  are  looks  for  all  seasons  of  our 
life.  You  may  stand  by  any  lady  of  your  age  in  Christendom, 
and  have  through  your  whole  time  been  a  match  for  all  the 
beauties  your  contemporaries.  We  have  this  comfort,  that  a  leg, 
an  eye,  or  a  tooth  lost,  does  not  necessarily  carry  away  with  it 
any  one  good  quality.  We  can  be  as  charitable,  as  liberal,  and 
as  honest,  wanting  any  of  these  members  as  with  them.  There 
is  an  old  general  mentioned  in  history  that  had  but  one  left  of 
what  everybody  else  has  commonly  two ;  and  yet  with  one  leg, 
one  arm,  one  eye  and  one  ear,  he  was,  for  a  drunken  man,  the 
best  officer  of  his  day.^ 

You  cannot  but  pass  your  time  agreeably.  What  addition 
of  happiness  could  you  desire  ?  A  pleasant  house  and  garden, 
fine  air,  beautiful  walks,  plenty  of  good  food,  books,  a  sweet- 
tempered  young  lady  to  read  to  you  and  help  to  divert  you. 
You  have  a  great  deal  of  company,  you  owe  nobody  a  sixpence, 
and  your  friends  and  acquaintances  love  and  esteem  you.  For 
my  part,  I  think  this  a  situation  to  be  envied,  and  that  all  these 
fair  appearances  would  be  nothing  without  a  conscience  free  from 
pangs  and  an  universal  benevolence  to  mankind.  With  these 
supports  we  enjoy  the  present  hours,  but  are  not  therefore 
unmindful  of  our  natural  end.  You  say  your  trees  are  in 
bloom,  and  you  wish  not  to  kill  them  with  too  much  fruit. 

The  remedy  is  very  easy ;  pluck  off  the  superfluity,  and  only 
leave  as  much  as  they  can  afford  to  nourish,  and  that  will  be  but 
very  little.  Let  other  gardens  find  you  fruit  this  year  and  the 
next,  and  then  your  own  will  supply  you. 

1  JosiaSj  Comte  de  Rantzau  of  Holstein,  died  1650. 


ALAN   BRECK  179 

Mr.  Skinner  has  brought  my  shirts,  and  they  please  me  much. 
Are  not  the  ruffles  a  small  matter  too  long  .?  I  have  wore  my 
old  linen  to  shivers,  and  do  really  thank  you  for  this  seasonable 
relief.  I  sent  a  trunk  to  London  with  books  and  two  pieces  of 
Irish  cloth,  under  the  care  of  an  old  sergeant  of  the  regiment. 
You  may  open  it  if  you  please.  I  beg  my  compliments  to  Miss 
Brydges.^     My  duty  to  my  father,  etc. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

While  on  the  march,  Wolfe  and  the  few  companies  he  took  with 
him,  heard  much  of  the  murder  of  Colin  Campbell  of  "  Glenure.*" 
This  singularly  dramatic  crime  has  since  engaged  the  pens  of  many 
historians  and  novelists  from  Sir  Walter  Scott  to  R.  L.  Stevenson 
and  Mr.  Andrew  Lang.  The  supposed  assassin  was  one  Alan 
Breck,  a  cadet  of  the  House  of  Stuart. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Fort  Augustus,  May  28^A,  1752. 

Dear  Sir, — We  have  been  here  about  ten  days,  and  the 
garrison  at  present  consists  of  two  field-officers,  five  or  six  other 
officers,  and  fourscore  recruits.  Lord  Bury  was  soon  tired  and 
went  off  to  Fort  William  ;  from  thence  he  goes  to  Lord  Breadal- 
baine'*s,  and  in  a  little  while  after  to  England.  I  can''t  find  work 
enough  to  employ  me  here,  and  as  the  weather  is  tolerably  fair, 
will  visit  some  of  our  posts,  and  perhaps  accept  of  an  invitation 
from  the  Laird  of  Macleod,  who  offers  to  show  me  a  very 
extraordinary  old  castle  in  the  Isle  of  Skye.^  Mr.  CoUingwood, 
our  Lieutenant-Governor,  is  an  old  acquaintance  of  yours ;  he 
expresses  great  esteem  for  you,  and  desires  me  to  tell  you  so. 
He  is  very  agreeable  to  us  all  in  his  character  of  Governor,  and 
if  he  can't  make  the  place  quite  pleasant,  he  endeavours  to  make 
it  easy. 

You  have  heard  of  the  strange  murder  that  was  committed 
about  a  fortnight  since  by  two  Highlanders,  at  the  instigation, 
it  is  believed,  of  a  lady,  the  wife  of  a  banished  rebel.  The 
gentleman  was  an  Argylshire  man,  and  factor  upon  some  of  the 
forfeited  estates.     Several  men  are  apprehended  upon  suspicion, 

1  Catherine,  fourth  daughter  of  the  Hon.  and  Rev.  Henry  Brydges,  and 
sister  to  Mrs.  Inwood.  She  afterwards  married  Lindley  Simpson,  Esq.,  of 
Bab  worth,  Notts.  Mrs.  Wolfe  bequeathed  her  the  sum  of  £200,  "  together 
with  my  picture  of  her  sister,  and  my  painted  dressing-glass  and  boxes,  in  my 
house  at  Bath." — Wright. 

*  Dunvegan  Castle. 
N  2 


180    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

but  I'm  sure  it  will  be  very  difficult  to  discover  the  actors  of  this 
bloody  deed.  The  factor  intended  to  remove  the  old  tenants  and 
to  plant  others  in  their  room,  and  this  is  supposed  to  be  their 
reason  for  killing  him. 

One  of  our  officers  has  sent  me  a  roebuck.  It  is  a  curious 
kind  of  deer,  less  than  our  fallow-deer,  but  seldom  fit  to  eat.  I 
intend  to  have  it  tamed  and  carried  to  England,  as  a  present  to 
my  mother.  It  will  be  three  weeks  or  a  month  before  we  shall 
be  told  whether  we  may  go  or  must  stay.  They  are  more  exact 
and  ready  in  warning  us  of  the  expiration  of  our  leave  than  in 
granting  it.  I  wish  you  much  health,  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother, 
and  am, 

Dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Not  all  of  Wolfe''s  officers  were  so  little  enamoured  of  the  High- 
lands as  he  himself  was.  One  of  his  captains,  Alexander  Trapaud, 
known  familiarly  to  him  as  "  Trap,""  really  expressed  a  preference 
for  Fort  Augustus  over  any  other  station.  They  doubtless  indulged 
in  much  raillery  on  the  subject,  but  a  few  months  after  Wolfe  left 
"  Trap  "  had  an  opportunity  of  testifying  to  his  preference  in  a 
practical  fashion.  He  applied  for  and  obtained  the  post  of  lieutenant- 
governor  of  the  fort,  and  there  for  three  and  forty  years  he 
remained.  At  Fort  Augustus  this  friend  of  Wolfe  married,  reared 
a  family  and  duly  paid  the  debt  of  nature  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-four,  happy  in  being  the  principal  character  in  the  locality 
and  entertaining  all  strangers  who  visited  that  remote  region  with 
the  utmost  civility.  Here  in  1773  came  Dr.  Johnson  and  Boswell 
on  their  route  to  the  Hebrides,  and  here  they  passed  one  August 
night.  "  It  was  comfortable,""  wrote  Boswell,  "  to  find  ourselves  in 
a  well-built  little  square  and  so  neatly-furnished  house,  in  good 
company  and  with  a  good  supper  before  us  ;  in  short,  with  all  the 
conveniences  of  civilized  life,  in  the  midst  of  rude  mountains  Mrs. 
Trapaud  and  the  Governor's  daughter  and  her  husband.  Captain 
Newmarsh,  were  all  most  obliging  and  polite."" 

As  for  Dr.  Johnson,  he  says  in  his  own  narrative  :  "  Mr.  Trapaud, 
the  Governor,  treated  us  with  that  courtesy  which  is  so  closely 
connected  with  the  military  character.  He  came  out  to  meet  us 
beyond  the  gates  and  apologized  that  at  so  late  an  hour  the  rules  of 
a  garrison  suffered  him  to  give  us  entrance  only  at  the  postern."" 


IX 

FROM  DUBLIN  TO  PARIS 

Wolfe  reached  Perth  on  June  20,  and  here  renewed  his 
acquaintance  with  some  of  his  old  friends,  officers  in  his  father's 
regiment  stationed  in  the  royal  city.  While  at  Perth  he  wrote 
Mrs.  Wolfe,  but  did  not  complete  the  letter  until  he  arrived  in 
Glasgow,  en  route  for  Ireland. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Perth,  June  26, 1762. 

Dear  Madam, — I  stopped  three  or  four  days  in  this  place 
to  divert  myself  with  Loftus,  who  is,  I  think,  rather  more 
humorous  and  pleasant  than  he  used  to  be,  at  least  he  appears 
so  to  me,  who  am  almost  grave.  He  goes  with  me  to  Glasgow, 
where  I  leave  him,  and  proceed  on  my  journey  to  Port  Patrick. 
Loftus  tells  me  that  the  physicians  have  all  along  mistaken  his 
case ;  that  so  far  from  having  his  blood  tainted  (as  they  have 
been  pleased  to  insinuate),  it  is  to  his  fine  habit  of  body,  and 
strength  of  constitution  that  he  is  indebted  for  his  recovery. 

Mr.  Pattison  sends  a  pointer  to  Blackheath;  if  you  wiU 
order  him  to  be  tied  up  in  your  stable,  or  in  Mr.  Woodcock's 
it  will  oblige  me  much.     The  dog  is  very  ugly  but  very  good. 

I  have  not  yet  determined  when  I  shall  go,  nor  how  I  shall 
travel,  only  in  general  that  I  intend  to  see  the  North  of  Ireland 
and  the  cities  of  Cork  and  Dublin. 

If  you  hear  of  a  good  servant  that  can,  or  will  learn  to  dress 
a  wig  and  save  me  that  prodigious  expense  in  London,  it  will 
be  a  favour  done  me  to  engage  him,  at  least  so  far  that  I  may 
take  him  or  not  when  I  see  him ;  sometime  towards  the  latter 
end  of  August  or  beginning  of  September.  John  is  dirty  and 
grows  impertinent,  the  other  I  have  turned  away  for  killing  one 
horse  and  for  spoiling  the  rest. 

I  have  another  favour  to  beg  of  you,  and  you'll  think  it  an 

odd  one ;  'tis  to  order  some  currant  jelly  to  be  made  in  a  crock 

for  my  use.     It  is  the  custom  in  Scotland  to  eat  it  in  the  morning 

with  bread ;  I  find  it  not  only  a  very  pleasant  custom  but  a  very 

wholesome  one. 

181 


182    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

You  know  what  a  whimsical  sort  of  person  I  am  and  how 
variable  and  unsteady ;  nothing  pleases  me  now  but  the  rougher 
kind  of  entertainments,  such  as  hunting,  shooting  and  fishing ; 
there's  none  of  that  kind  near  London,  and  I  have  distant 
notions  of  taking  a  little,  very  little  house,  remote  upon  the 
edge  of  the  forest,  or  waste,  merely  for  sport,  and  keep  it  till  we 
go  to  Minorca. 

Perth,  24:th  June,  1762. 

I  writ  the  above  portion  of  my  letter  at  Perth,  and  I  close  it 
at  Glasgow.  Loftus  is  by  and  makes  such  a  noise  that  I  must 
finish  as  quick  as  possible.  I  should  be  glad  to  have  the  shirts 
made  like  the  last  as  to  the  collars  and  sleeves,  but  a  little 
longer  and  quite  plain,  for  I  must  be  at  some  expense  for  fine 
ruffles.  I  am  vastly  glad  to  hear  that  you  are  both  so  well — 
may  you  long  continue  so.  My  duty  to  my  father. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
Glasgow,  June  26. 

The  idea  of  a  sporting  lodge  in  the  Highlands,  so  strikingly 
novel  in  1752,  has  since  become  a  familiar  one  to  the  natives  of 
these  islands. 

Without  lingering  at  Glasgow  many  days,  the  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  set  off  at  the  end  of  June  from  Port  Patrick  on  his  Irish 
holiday.  We  must  rely  upon  tradition  for  Wolfe's  itinerary  after 
his  landing  in  the  north  of  Ireland.  It  appears  he  visited  Belfast 
and  Londonderry,  and  no  doubt  spent  some  days  near  the  scene  of 
his  ancestors'  feats  of  arms  at  Limerick.  When  our  hero  arrived 
in  Dublin  he  saw  the  Irish  capital  at  the  height  of  its  outward 
splendour  and  political  importance,  the  seat  of  an  Irish  Parliament, 
and  of  the  Viceregal  Court.  On  the  day  following  his  arrival  in 
Dublin  he  thus  writes  to  his  father — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Dublin,  18th  July,  1762. 

Dear  Sir, — This  is  the  first  day  of  rest  since  I  left  Glasgow. 
I  came  here  last  night  not  a  little  fatigued,  you  may  believe, 
with  such  continued  hard  exercise,  but  otherwise  in  better 
condition  than  I  have  known  for  fourteen  months  past,  leaner 
than  can  be  described,  and  burnt  to  a  chip.     I  have  seen  your 


OPINION   OF  DUBLIN  183 

letter  to  my  uncle,  and  am  greatly  concerned  that  your  health 
is  not  so  perfect  as  I  always  wish  it  to  be.  If  the  season  has 
been  of  the  same  sort  that  they  have  had  in  this  country, — very 
wet  and  cold, — it  may  be  accounted  for,  and  a  drier  air,  and 
more  sun  will,  I  hope,  relieve  you.  My  uncle  has  complaints  in 
his  back  and  limbs,  and  is  obliged  to  put  on  flannels ;  whether 
it  be  the  rheumatism  or  gout  flying  about  him,  his  physicians 
cannot  determine.  He  is  otherwise  cheerful  and  well.  I  stay 
here  four  or  five  days,  and  then  set  out  for  Cork,  where  I  shall 
embark  in  one  of  the  Bristol  ships ;  and  if  I  find  myself  strong 
in  health  and  in  circumstances  shall  continue  my  journey  from 
Bristol  through  the  West,  and  so  home. 

I  came  yesterday  from  Drogheda,  but  not  till  I  had  seen 
that  ground  and  the  river  so  remarkable  in  our  history.  The 
protestants  have  erected  a  monument  in  memorial  of  their 
deliverance,  very  near  the  ford  where  the  King  crossed  the 
Boyne.  The  inscriptions  take  notice  of  the  happy  consequences 
of  the  battle,  and  on  one  side  of  the  pillar  they  do  honour  to 
the  memory  of  Duke  Schomberg.  I  had  more  satisfaction  in 
looking  at  this  spot  than  in  all  the  variety  that  I  have  met 
with ;  and  perhaps  there  is  not  another  piece  of  ground  in  the 
world  that  I  could  take  so  much  pleasure  to  observe. 

The  north  of  Ireland  and  the  neighbourhood  of  this  city  are 
very  little  inferior  for  beauty  and  fertility  to  any  parts  of 
England  that  I  have  seen,  and  others  they  exceed  in  both. 
And  there  is  yet  great  room  for  different  improvements,  par- 
ticularly in  planting  and  draining  the  boggy  grounds.  They 
have  fine  clear  streams  as  can  be  seen,  and  very  large  timber  where 
it  is  encouraged ;  but  I  am  told  that  the  best  estates  are  involved 
deeply  in  debt,  the  tenants  racked  and  plundered,  and  consequently 
industry  and  good  husbandry  disappointed  or  destroyed. 

This  appears  to  be  a  prodigious  city,  and  they  continue  to 
build ;  the  streets  are  crowded  with  people  of  a  large  size  and 
well  limbed,  and  the  women  very  handsome.  They  have  clearer 
skins  and  fairer  complexions  than  the  women  in  England  or 
Scotland,  and  are  exceedingly  straight  and  well  made.  You'll 
be  surprised  that  I  should  know  this  so  soon,  but  I  have  seen 
a  multitude  already,  for  they  take  some  pains  to  show  themselves. 
My  uncle  seems  to  have  preserved  his  cheerfulness  and  vivacity. 
He  joins  with  me  in  wishing  you  both  all  manner  of  good. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe, 


184    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

It  must  have  been  a  source  of  the  most  lively  satisfaction  to 
Major  Wolfe  to  have  his  brilliant  nephew  with  him.  There  is 
some  reason  for  believing  that  he  was  Wolfe's  godfather;  at  all 
events,  the  Major  stood  in  a  fervently  avuncular  relation  to 
him.  Major  Wolfe  was  an  old  bachelor.  He  had  often  visited  his 
brother's  family  when  James  was  a  child  and  detected  unusual 
qualities  in  the  boy.  He  was  always  urging  him  forward,  and 
begging  him  to  remember  that  his  purse  was  ever  open  to  his 
I  necessities.  "Uncle  Wat,''  as  his  nephew  always  affectionately 
.y styles  him,  was  a  character  not  unlike  "my  Uncle  Toby."  His 
I  talk  was  all  of  column,  square  and  echelon,  convex  and  concave 
I  fronts,  and  the  formal  tactics  and  complicated  drill  of  Marl- 
borough's day.  Wolfe,  like  most  young  men,  and  especially  those 
who  had  seen  so  much  of  the  actual  practice  of  warfare,  was  inclined 
to  hold  views  which  the  elder  man  warmly  denounced  as  heterodox. 
The  Major  probably  resided  at  Lucas's  Coffee  House,  on  Cork 
Hill,  near  the  Castle.  At  all  events,  this  was  his  favourite  place 
of  resort,  as  it  was  of  all  officers  in  Dublin,  being  indeed  a  sort  of 
military  rendezvous  and  officers'  club.  The  ground  immediately 
in  the  rear  of  Lucas's  enjoyed  a  somewhat  sinister  reputation  in 
those  days,  inasmuch  as  this  was  the  scene  of  numberless  duels. 
Such  affairs  of  honour  commonly  drew  a  crowd  of  gallant  spectators 
to  the  windows  of  the  establishment,  some  of  whom  were  prepared 
to  back  their  favourite  combatant  with  their  money. 

It  is  much  to  be  regretted  that  we  possess  no  further  account 
of  Wolfe's  journeyings  in  the  south  of  Ireland.  About  the  middle 
of  August  he  crossed  the  Channel  to  Bristol  and  made  his  way 
thence  to  Blackheath.  The  house  which  Wolfe  now  visited  for 
the  first  time,  and  by  which  its  owner  and  builder  set  great  store, 
still  survives  with  its  sombre  front  facing  Blackheath  Common  in 
nearly  the  same  state  as  it  was  a  century  and  a  half  ago.  The 
land  upon  which  the  house  stands  and  the  not  very  extensive 
garden  behind  it  are  carved  out  of  Greenwich  Park,  so  that  in 
those  days,  when  the  Park  was  not  so  much  frequented  by  the 
populace,  as  it  became  at  a  later  period,  the  General  may  be  con- 
sidered as  claiming  its  beauty  and  expanse  as  his  own.  It  is  in  an 
elevated  situation  at  the  top  of  Croom's  Hill,  and  before  it  rose 
eventually  a  shaded  avenue,  now  called  Chesterfield  Walk,  out  of 
compliment  to  the  noble  lord  who  established  his  suburban  residence 
in  the  fine  Queen  Anne  mansion  a  stone's  throw  from  that  of  the 
Wolfes.  Chesterfield  was,  at  the  moment  of  Wolfe's  arrival  in 
Blackheath,  enjoying  an  unusual  amount  of  celebrity  as  the  pro- 


SETS   OUT   FOR  PARIS  185 

meter  of  the  famous  change  in  the  calendar,  by  which  the  3rd  of 
September,  1752,  became  the  14th,  and  the  new  year  was  decreed 
to  begin  on  the  1st  of  January  instead  of  the  25th  March.^ 

At  Blackheath  Wolfe  waited  somewhat  impatiently  for  a 
favourable  response  to  his  further  application  for  leave  to  go 
abroad.  Why  this  should  have  been  withheld  was  something  of 
a  mystery  unless  it  was  that  the  General  or  Mrs.  Wolfe  secretly 
opposed  the  idea,  as  fearing  that  their  son  might  contract  an 
undesirable  alliance  either  marital  or  military.  We  have  already 
seen  his  half-threats  to  embrace  the  Prussian  service,  and  it  is 
believed  Count  Lacey  offered  him  an  appointment  on  his  staff. 
Again,  the  Duke  of  Cumberland  probably  condemned  as  arrant 
nonsense  the  idea  of  any  officer  improving  his  ideas  by  foreign 
travel.  His  Colonel,  Lord  Bury,  discouraged  the  notion  out  of 
purely  selfish  reasons,  until  he  began  to  see  his  Lieutenant-ColonePs 
temper  rising,  and  fearing  to  lose  him  altogether  interceded  with 
the  Commander-in-Chief.  Very  luckily  for  Wolfe,  Bury's  father, 
the  Earl  of  Albemarle,  was  British  Ambassador  to  the  Court  of 
Versailles,  and  this  promised  to  render  Wolfe*'s  path  a  pleasant 
one.  On  October  2,  therefore,  armed  with  several  letters  to 
persons  of  influence,  he  set  out  for  Paris.  The  young  officer  could 
hardly  have  visited  the  French  capital  at  a  more  propitious 
moment.  There  was  an  interval — brief  enough  as  it  turned  out — of 
peace  between  the  two  countries.  Louis  XV  was  in  the  height  of 
his  career  of  luxury,  vice  and  splendour.  But  it  was  neither  Louis 
nor  his  ministers,  but  the  Marquise  de  Pompadour  who  governed 
the  kingdom. 

This  daughter  of  a  humble  army  commissary,  Francois  Poisson, 
had  been  some  time  installed  at  Versailles,  first  as  mistress  and 
afterwards  as  ami  necessaire.  It  is  amazing  to  read  of  the  incessant 
artifices  this  woman  resorted  to  in  order  to  keep  her  power — "  the 
everlasting  huntings,  concerts,  private  theatricals,  late  suppers  and 
what  not — anything  to  distract  the  royal  mind  and  to  make  it 
think  only  of  the  clever  purveyor  of  gaieties."  Being  a  woman  of 
real  ability  she  gradually  became  premier  of  France,  and  the 
ministerial  council  condescended  to  a^emble  in  her  boudoir. 

^  This  reform  of  the  Calendar  has  been  fruitful  of  much  confusion  as 
regards  the  dating  of  letters  :  particularly  those  written  by  Wolfe.  But 
before  17o3  it  had  been  the  practice  to  indicate  both  years  in  letters  penned 
between  January  1  and  Lady  Day — thus :  1751-2,  or  17|i,  sometimes 
increasing  instead  of  lessening  the  confusion.  Or  the  writer  forgot  the 
precise  year,  leaving  to  posterity  to  ascertain  it,  if,  in  the  case  of  his  letters, 
it  were  worth  ascertaining. 


186     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  ^th  October,  1752. 

Deae  Sir, — As  I  am  vastly  sensible  of  the  many  favours 
and  marks  of  kindness  that  you  have  heaped  upon  me,  so  I 
shall  endeavour  to  make  you  as  sensible  of  my  gratitude. 
Your  generous  proceeding  in  enabling  me  to  undertake 
this  business  shall  never  be  forgot.  I  hope  and  I  dare  say 
you  have  overlooked  and  forgiven  that  part  of  my  former 
conduct  you  had  just  reason  to  be  displeased  with  in  the  belief 
that  it  arose  more  from  my  distemper  than  from  my  natural 
disposition. 

I  think  it  was  the  2nd  of  October  that  I  left  Blackheath. 
I  lay  that  night  at  Canterbury;  an  old  friend,  a  captain  of 
Dragoons,  supped  with  me,  and  helped  to  deliver  me  from  my 
own  thoughts.  The  3rd  I  went  to  Dover,  and  as  my  old  Lady 
Grey^s  house  was  in  the  way  I  called  on  her,  and  was  very 
graciously  received.^  She  pressed  me  to  dine,  but  that  could 
not  be,  as  the  time  of  the  packet's  sailing  was  uncertain.  At 
her  house  I  met  a  Miss  Scott,  whom  my  mother  has  heard  of. 
The  good  old  lady  diverted  herself  with  us  two,  told  each  that 
the  other  was  not  married,  offered  her  mediation,  and  thought 
it  a  very  lucky  encounter,  for  the  young  lady  and  I  got  to  the 
house  exactly  at  the  same  time.  However,  I  escaped  untouched, 
and  left  my  old  friend  to  make  up  matters  as  she  pleased.  The 
packet  did  not  sail  that  night,  but  we  embarked  at  half-an-hour 
after  six  on  Wednesday  morning,  and  got  into  Calais  at  ten.  I 
never  suffered  so  much  in  so  short  a  time  at  sea.  There  were 
two  English  gentlemen  of  condition  in  the  ship  travelling  my 
way ;  we  agreed  to  come  together,  and  on  Saturday,  the  7th,  in 
the  morning,  arrived  at  Paris  without  any  sort  of  difficulty  or 
inconvenience. 

The  people  seem  (as  their  character  is)  to  be  very  sprightly, 
and  to  deal  largely  in  the  exterior ;  for  a  man  can  hardly  commit 
a  greater  crime  than  to  be  mal  mise,  ou  mal  coiffe. 

The  buildings  are  very  magnificent,  far  surpassing  any  we 
have  in  London  ;  I  mean  the  houses  of  the  higher  nobility  and 
peers  of  France.  The  Gardens  des  Tuileries,  that  you  have 
heard  so  much  of,  is  as  disagreeable  a  sandy  walk  as  one  would 
wish.  They  are  indeed  near  the  Seine  and  the  Louvre,  but  have 
little  else  to  recommend  them.  The  Mall,  or  your  park  at 
Greenwich,  are  infinitely  superior.  There  are  no  fortified  towns 
1  Lady  Grey  of  Howick,  see  post,  p.  293. 


LORD   ALBEMARLE  187 

between  Calais  and  Paris ;  the  country  is  very  beautiful  in  most 
places,  entirely  in  corn,  and  quite  open  where  the  woods  allow  it 
to  be  so ;  that  is,  there  are  few  or  no  enclosures. 

Mr.  Selwin  ^  has  recommended  a  French  master  to  me,  and  in 
a  few  days  I  begin  to  ride  in  the  Academy,  but  must  dance  and 
fence  in  my  own  lodgings,  for  fear  of  a  discovery.  A  letter 
would  miscarry  that  had  any  strokes  of  politics  in  it,  so  I  shall 
never  touch  that  matter;  besides,  it  is  neither  your  taste  nor 
mine.  The  Dauphin  is  perfectly  recovered,^  and  I  believe  the 
people  are  very  hearty  and  sincere  in  the  satisfaction  and  pleasure 
they  profess  upon  that  occasion.  The  Duke  of  Orleans,  to 
signify  his  particular  joy,  has  given  an  entertainment  at  St. 
Cloud,  in  the  highest  taste  and  magnificence,  and  at  prodigious 
expense. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  Mr.   Haren  of  the  following  was  an   old  friend  of  the 
Wolfes  in  Burlington  Gardens. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  2Qth  October,  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — Having  discovered  that  I  understand  but 
little  of  the  French  language,  and  that  I  speak  it  very  incorrectly 
(Notwithstanding  Mr.  Haren's  honourable  approbation),  I  am 
disposed  to  fall  upon  some  method  that  may  lead  me  to  a  better 
knowledge  of  that  useful  tongue.  The  first  necessary  step  is  to 
leave  ofl'  speaking  English,  and  to  write  it  as  little  as  possible. 
This  resolution  of  mine  shall  not,  however,  extend  so  far  as  to 
cut  off  all  communication  between  us,  for  I  had  rather  lose  this 
or  a  much  greater  advantage  than  be  denied  the  satisfaction  of 
expressing  my  regard  for  you  in  the  plainest  and  dearest  manner ; 
and  I  will  borrow  neither  the  language  nor  meaning  of  these  airy 
people  when  I  speak  of  that. 

Lord  Albemarle  is  come  from  Fontainebleau  to  his  country 
house  within  two  miles  of  Paris,  and  will  soon  be  fixed  for  the 
cold  season.  I  went  to  Fontainebleau  to  pay  my  respects  to 
him,  and  have  very  good  reason  to  be  pleased  with  the  reception 
I  met  with.  The  best  amusement  for  strangers  in  Paris  is  the 
Opera,  and  the  next  to  that  is  the  playhouse.  There  are  some 
fine  voices  in  the  first,  and  several  good  actors  in  the  last.  The 
1  An  English  banker  in  Paris.  ^  Of  the  small-pox. 


188    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

theatre  is  a  school  to  acquire  the  French  language,  for  which 
reason  I  frequent  it  more  than  the  other.  Besides  it  is  a  cheaper 
diversion.  Youll  be  glad  to  hear  that  your  nephew  Whetham  ^ 
is  in  very  good  hands  ;  his  governor,  or  companion,  is  a  gentleman 
of  Switzerland,  who  was  formerly  in  the  army,  and  is  very  well 
spoken  of.  My  cousin  is  expected  here  in  three  weeks  or  a 
month,  and  he  stays  all  the  winter  in  Paris.  Madame  Pompadour 
is  a  very  agreeable  woman.  I  had  the  good  fortune  to  be  placed 
near  her  for  a  considerable  time.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father, 
and  wish  you  both  health  and  all  the  good  you  deserve. 

I  am,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Madame  de  Pompadour  observed  of  the  British  Ambassador  to 
France,  "  Milord  Albemarle  passes  his  time  agreeably  here.  The 
King  of  England  who  loves  him,  though  I  know  not  why,  sends 
him  his  lesson  all  ready,  and  he  comes  to  repeat  it  like  a  school- 
boy to  the  minister  of  foreign  affairs.""  A  previous  English  visitor 
to  Paris,  Horace  Walpole,  wrote,  "Lord  Albemarle  keeps  an 
immense  table  there  with  sixteen  people  in  the  kitchen :  his  aides- 
de-camp  invite  everybody,  but  he  seldom  graces  the  banquet 
himself,  living  retired  out  of  the  town  with  his  old  Columbine 
[Mademoiselle  Gaucher].  What  an  extraordinary  man !  With 
no  fortune  at  all  and  with  slight  parts,  he  has  seventeen  thoUvSand 
a  year  from  the  Government  which  he  squanders  away,  though  he 
has  great  debts." 

One  of  the  first  of  Wolfe's  new  English  acquaintance  in  Paris 
was  none  other  than  Philip  Stanhope,  natural  son  of  General 
Wolfe's  Blackheath  neighbour,  the  Earl  of  Chesterfield.  This 
young  man,  who  had  not  yet  attained  his  majority,  destined 
to  attain  celebrity  as  the  recipient  of  some  of  the  most  extra- 
ordinary letters  in  the  language,  had  arrived  in  Paris  with  his 
tutor,  the  Reverend  Walter  Harte,  afterwards  a  canon  of  Windsor. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  2nd  November ,  1752. 
Dear  Sir, — It  is  very  obliging  in  you  to  make  the  continu- 
ance of  your  favour   depend  upon  myself.     There  is  nothing 

1  John  Whetham,  Esq.,  of  Kirklington  Hall,  Nottinghamshire,  was  the 
only  son  of  Lieut. -General  Thomas  Whetham  and  Mary,  daughter  of  Edward 
Thompson,  Esq.,  of  Marston,  Yorkshire  (Mrs.  Wolfe's  sister).  He  was  born 
in  1731 ;  married  Elizabeth,  daughter  of  Evelyn  Chadwick,  Esq.,  of  West 
Leak  ;  was  sheriff  of  the  county  of  York  ;  and  died  without  surviving  issue  in 
1781. — Burke's  Landed  Gentry. 


PHILIP   STANHOPE  189 

upon  earth  that  I  value  so  much  as  your  affection  and  esteem 
and  I  hope  nothing  will  ever  happen  that  will  force  you  to 
withdraw  either  the  one  or  the  other.  Your  neighbours  are 
kind  in  their  enquiries  after  me.  I  believe  they  think  they 
oblige  you  in  so  doing.  I  would  rather  owe  their  civility  to  a 
favourable  disposition  towards  you  than  to  any  opinion  they 
might  entertain  of  me. 

Lord  Albemarle  has  behaved  to  me  in  a  manner  that  I  could 
not  presume  to  expect  from  him.  Whenever  he  comes  to  Paris 
he  immediately  sends  for  me  to  his  house,  and  puts  me  upon  so 
easy  and  genteel  a  footing  there  that  I  have  not  language  enough 
to  return  him  proper  thanks.  If  you  should  see  Lord  Bury,  I 
beg  youll  be  so  good  to  take  notice  of  it.  I  have  writ  to  his 
Lordship  to  acknowledge  the  effect  of  his  letter,  and  to  signify 
my  grateful  sense  of  his  and  his  father's  excessive  politeness. 
There's  but  little  company  in  town  at  present.  In  ten  days, 
however,  it  will  be  crowded.  Mr.  Stanhope,  Lord  Chesterfield's 
son,  is  here ;  he  came  to  visit  me  the  other  day,  after  his  arrival, 
but  we  have  made  no  acquaintance  yet,  so  that  I  cannot  give 
you  any  judgment  upon  the  offspring  of  so  great  a  man  ;  but  I 
fancy,  not  without  some  grounds,  he  is  infinitely  inferior  to  his 
father.  Lord  Brudenell  is  at  one  of  the  academies,  and  is  the 
direct  reverse  of  the  Earl.  One  could  hardly  believe  that  a 
creature  of  his  stamp  could  have  any  relation  or  connection  with 
a  man  of  Lord  Cardigan's  sweetness  of  temper.  We  have  had 
the  finest  autumn  that  has  been  known  for  many  years.  The 
dry  air  and  constant  exercise  have  restored  me  to  a  condition  to 
be  envied. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

So  Wolfe  was  not  long  to  be  without  relations  in  Paris. 
Whetham  was  three  or  four  years  Wolfe's  junior,  and,  as  we  shall 
see,  his  cousin  James  forms  an  excellent  opinion  of  him. 


To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  14tth  November,  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — One  would  imagine  that  a  great  city  would 

provide  a  great  deal  of  furniture  for  a  letter  and  that  with  such 

variety  to  work  upon,  a  man  of  an  indifferent  genius  would  find 

his  hands  full.     So  much  of  my  time  is  taken  up  in  different 


190    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

sort  of  exercises  as  to  leave  very  little  for  anything  else.  For 
instance,  I  am  up  every  morning  at,  or  before  seven  o'clock,  and 
fully  employed  till  twelve ;  then  I  dress  and  visit,  and  dine  at 
two.  At  five,  most  people  (I  mean  strangers)  go  to  the  public 
entertainments,  which  keep  you  till  nine,  and  at  eleven  I  am 
always  in  bed.  This  way  of  living  is  directly  opposite  to  the 
practice  of  the  place ;  but  I  find  it  impossible  to  pursue  the 
business  I  came  upon  and  to  comply  with  the  customs  and 
manners  of  the  inhabitants  at  the  same  time.  No  constitution, 
however  robust,  could  go  through  all.  My  cousin  Whetham  is 
near  me,  and  lives  much  in  the  same  way  that  I  do.  We  are 
a  good  deal  together,  and  as  far  as  I  can  perceive  he  has  an 
exceeding  sweet  temper.  He  has  been  strangely  managed  in 
his  education,  not  in  point  of  learning,  but  in  other  respects. 
However,  his  principles  are  right,  and  I  hope  unalterable. 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris^  November  25,  1752. 

Dear  Madam, — Some  days  ago  I  sent  for  a  dentist  to 
examine  my  teeth,  he  examined  them ;  told  me  they  were  much 
better  teeth  and  in  better  order  than  was  common  to  our 
countrymen.  However  he  found  out  that  two  of  them  stood  in 
need  of  his  art  and  he  immediately  applied  himself  to  redress  the 
evil  and  stuffed  lead  where  it  was  necessary.  When  the  opera- 
tion was  over  I  told  him  that  a  lady  of  my  acquaintance  whose 
welfare  I  had  very  much  at  heart,  complained  of  her  teeth ;  he 
asked  me  several  questions  concerning  the  condition  of  your 
gums  and  teeth,  what  you  had  been  accustomed  to  feed  most 
upon,  what  you  had  used  to  clean  your  mouth  with,  and  what 
remedies  you  had  hitherto  used  to  preserve  your  teeth.  As  I 
could  not  satisfy  him  clearly,  he  told  me  that  if  you  would  get 
any  surgeon  to  state  the  present  case  of  your  teeth  and  gums 
and  omit  nothing  that  could  contribute  to  give  him  a  thorough 
knowledge  of  your  disorder,  he  would  advise  you  how  to  proceed, 
but  he  seemed  to  think  by  the  description  I  gave  him,  that  there 
is  a  humour  in  your  blood  that  discovers  itself  in  the  parts 
above  mentioned.  He  talk'd  of  incisions  in  the  gums  and  other 
operations  that  I  did  not  understand.  If  you  think  it  worth 
your  while  to  consult  with  a  man  at  this  distance  you  will  do 
as  he  desires  and  leave  the  rest  to  me. 

I  hope  the  meeting  of  the  Generals  will  end  in  the  punish- 
ment of  those  that  deserve  it  and  that  have  hitherto  escaped 


HIS   DAILY  HABITS  191 

the  hand  of  justice.  My  father's  share  in  that  business  must 
necessarily  stir  him  about,  and  I  hope  as  he  goes  often  to 
London,  he  will  take  some  opportunity  of  doing  what  he  never 
did  in  his  life,  I  mean  of  speaking  a  good  word  for  himself. 
It  is  extraordinary  that  a  man  so  just  to  every  body  else,  should 
all  along  forget  what  is  due  to  his  o^vn  person. 

My  way  of  life  that  you  enquire  after  is  very  singular  for 
a  young  man  that  appears  to  be  in  the  world  and  in 
pleasure.  Four  or  five  days  in  the  week  I  am  up  an  hour  be- 
fore day  (that  is  six  hours  sooner  than  any  other  fine  gentleman 
in  Paris),  I  ride,  and  as  I  told  you  in  a  former  letter  I  fence  and 
dance  and  have  a  master  to  teach  me  French.  These  occupa- 
tions take  up  all  the  morning.  I  dine  twice  or  three  times  a 
week  at  home,  sometimes  at  Lord  Albemarle's,  and  some  time 
with  my  English  acquaintances.  After  dinner,  I  either  go  to 
the  public  entertainments  or  to  visit,  at  nine  I  come  home,  and 
am  in  bed  generally  before  eleven.  I  can't  say  I  have  any  idle 
time  ;  nor  do  I  live  in  the  most  agreeable  manner,  but  I  get 
what  I  came  here  for,  I  take  great  care  of  my  health.  I  succeed 
much  better  in  fencing  and  riding  than  I  do  in  the  art  of  danc- 
ing, for  they  suit  my  genius  better ;  and  I  improve  a  little  in  the 
French  language.  Lord  Albemarle  has  done  me  the  favour  to 
invite  me  to  his  house  when  he  has  had  the  foreign  ambassadors 
and  some  considerable  men  of  this  country  to  dinner,  but  I  have 
no  great  acquaintance  with  the  French  women,  nor  am  likely  to 
have — it  is  almost  impossible  to  introduce  oneself  amongst  them- 
selves without  losing  a  great  deal  of  money,  which  you  know  I 
can't  afford  ;  besides  these  entertainments  begin  at  the  time  I  go 
to  bed,  and  I  have  not  health  enough  to  sit  up  all  night  and 
work  all  day.  If  I  had  three  or  four  female  acquaintances  that 
would  be  contented  with  an  hour  or  two  of  conversation,  it  is  all 
that  I  desire.  You  may  perhaps  think  that  my  way  of  going  on 
infers  little  or  no  expense,  but  I  must  assure  you  on  the  contrary, 
and  that  without  the  least  extravagance  on  my  side,  unless 
wearing  laced  ruffles  may  be  reckon'd  so,  which  I  am  forced  to 
do  in  conformity  to  the  general  practice,  and  that  I  may  be  the 
better  received.  I  told  you  in  my  last  letter  what  kind  of  a 
youth  my  cousin  appears  to  be  ;  we  are  likely  to  live  well  to- 
gether, he  is  very  peacable  and  good-humoured,  and  I  have  no 
mind  to  quarrel  with  anybody,  especially  with  friends  or  rela- 
tions. I  thank  you  for  the  precaution  about  my  clothes,  but  I 
shall  be  in  no  great  danger.     I  have  been  at  Lady  Browne's,  and 


192    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

have  found  her  to  be  a  very  sensible  entertaining  woman.  She 
sees  but  Httle  company,  takes  great  care  of  a  little  daughter  that 
she  has,  who  appears  to  be  very  well-bred  and  very  clever.  I 
have  been  introduced  to  Lady  Archibald  Hamilton  too.  She  is 
so  well  known  that  I  need  say  no  more.^ 

Ill  stand  to  any  bargain  that  you  may  make  with  Mrs. 
Morris,  providing  you  are  to  reap  any  benefit  by  my  sufferings. 
Ill  kiss  her  till  she  cries  out,  if  it  can  be  of  any  service  to  you, 
though  I  think  I  should  have  enough  to  do  to  make  her  squeak. 

The  poor  people  of  this  land  are  going  into  confusion  upon 
religious  matters,  and  at  a  critical  time,  when  they  might  free 
themselves  from  an  intolerable  burden.  I  hate  to  see  misery  or 
the  prospect  of  misery,  even  amongst  those  likely  to  become  our 
enemies.     This  is  all  that  can  be  said  upon  the  subject. 

All  my  letters  are  come  safe.  Rickson  is  lucky  in  the  change 
and  happy.  I  dare  say  he  thinks  himself  to  have  escaped.  We 
shall  meet  at  Edinburgh  in  the  spring ;  in  the  meantime  I  beg 
you  to  assure  him  of  my  constant  friendship.  I  wish  I  could 
send  you  the  finest  grapes  that  can  be  seen.  They  are  gathered 
every  day  fresh  for  me  in  the  gardens  of  a  convent,  and  are  the 
same  that  the  King  eats.  It  would  be  a  far  greater  pleasure  to 
offer  them  to  you,  than  to  use  them  myself.  Fresh  grapes  in 
the  latter  part  of  November  are  a  curiosity. 

I  wish  you  both  much  health  and  much  diversion.  My  duty 
to  my  father. 

I  am,  dear  madam. 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  W. 

An  old  lady  of  fashion,  a  relation  of  Col.  Lafausille,  has 
been  extremely  civil  to  me.  If  my  father  ever  writes  to  the 
Colonel  I  should  be  glad,  he  would  take  notice  of  that. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  Uh  December,  1752. 

Dear  Sir, — The  post  comes  in  almost  as  regularly  as  if  there 

was  no  water-carriage,  so  that  when  you  do  me  the  honour  to 

^  Lady  Jane,  daughter  of  James,  sixth  Earl  of  Abercorn,  was  the  second 
wife  of  Lord  Archibald,  youngest  son  of  William,  third  Duke  of  Hamilton. 
Lord  Archibald  Hamilton,  who  was  Governor  of  Jamaica  and  of  Greenwich 
Hospital,  died  about  a  year  after  his  wife,  aged  eighty-two.  They  had  three 
sons,  of  whom  the  youngest  was  William,  who  became  one  of  the  King's 
equerries,  and  M.P.  for  Midhurst.  It  almost  startles  us  to  reflect  that  this 
Ensign  Hamilton,  Wolfe's  "  friend  and  companion,"  became  Nelson's  friend. 
Sir  William  Hamilton  and  the  husband  of  the  famous  Lady  Hamilton. 


ENSIGN  HAMILTON  193 

write  I  get  your  letter  very  soon.  That  of  the  27th  November 
came  to  me  on  the  2nd  instant. 

It  is,  as  you  say,  Sir,  some  sort  of  advantage  to  me  to  have 
admittance  to  the  Ambassador,  and  an  honour  to  be  under  his 
protection ;  but  it  does  not  include  all  the  advantages  that  one 
would  be  apt  to  imagine.  His  Lordship  does  not  see  so  much 
company  as  Ambassadors  commonly  do  ;  and  though  he  is  vastly 
liked  and  generally  esteemed  in  France,  his  way  of  living  and 
that  of  the  people  of  the  country  is  somewhat  different. 

The  Duke  of  Richmond  is  in  Paris.  I  have  met  him  some- 
times at  Lord  Albemarle's,  and  by  that  means  have  the  honour 
to  know  him.  As  far  as  my  discernment  goes,  he  promises 
to  make  a  considerable  figure  in  our  way,  to  which  his  genius 
seems  to  lead  him,  and  what  is  uncommon  at  eighteen  he  is  not 
entirely  taken  up  with  the  outward  appearances  and  gildings  of 
soldiership,  but  aims  at  the  higher  and  more  solid  branches  of 
military  knowledge.^ 

Mr.  Haren's  nephew  is  lately  returned  from  his  country 
house.  He  and  a  very  civil  old  lady,  his  mother,  have 
endeavoured  to  convince  me  that  a  recommendation  from  Mr. 
Haren  has  all  imaginable  regard  paid  to  it.  They  have  received 
me  in  a  very  polite  manner,  and  sufficiently  proved  their  affection 
for  their  relation  and  difference  for  strangers  by  that  reception. 
Lady  Archibald  Hamilton  died  last  night  of  a  fever,  after  an 
illness  of  a  few  days.  She  had  left  her  little  family  in  the 
utmost  grief  and  distress.  Lord  Archibald  is  extremely  old 
and  infirm ;  his  son  and  daughter  are  both  very  young,  and 
nobody  to  direct  or  assist  them — I  mean  no  relation,  for  I  believe 
Lord  Albemarle  will  do  everything  that  is  right  and  proper. 
The  son  is  an  ensign  in  the  Third  Regiment,  and  my  friend  and 
companion.  You  may  believe  that  if  I  can  be  of  the  least  use 
to  him  I  sha''n't  neglect  the  opportunity. 

I  have  inquired  after  the  Pretender,  and  can't  hear  where  he 
hides  himself  There  are  people  that  believe  him  to  be  secreted 
in   Poland   with   some    of  his   mother's   relations.     My  friend 

Colonel  D has  got  a  regiment  of  Dragoons.     There  is  a 

sort  of  interest  that  man  has  crept  into,  better  and  of  more 
efficiency  than  service,  worth,  or  honour.  It  would  almost  make 
one  forswear  open,  fair  behaviour  as  lumber,  and  the  impediment 

1  He  succeeded  to  the  Dukedom  in  1750.     His  future  was  distinguished, 
and  he  died  a  Field-Marshal.     Entering  political  life  he  became  in  1765 
Principal  Secretary  of  State  in  the  Rockingham  administration, 
P 


194    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

to  success  and  a  marischars  staff;  but,  on  the  other  hand,  a  man 
sleeps  well  that  uses  moderate  exercise,  and  never  dabbles  in  a 
dirty  pool.  There  are  multitudes  of  extravagant  customs  that 
divert,  but  there  is  one  that  makes  me  laugh  every  day.  The 
coachmen  here  drive  with  enormous  black  bear-skin  mufPs,  tied 
round  their  waists,  and  that,  when  their  horses  go  on  are  turned 
behind.  The  people  here  use  umbrellas  in  hot  weather  to  defend 
them  from  the  sun,  and  something  of  the  same  kind  to  secure 
them  from  the  snow  and  rain. 

I  wonder  a  practice  so  useful  is  not  introduced  into  England, 
where  there  are  such  frequent  showers,  and  especially  in  the 
country,  where  they  can  be  expanded  without  any  inconveniency.^ 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

As  my  mother  has  signified  her  desire  to  have  me  dance  and 
as  I  am  very  willing  to  oblige  her  in  every  thing  I  have  asked  my 
master,  whether  he  thinks  it  possible  ever  to  bring  that  matter 
about;  his  answer  is  that  he  is  not  positively  sure  he  shall 
succeed ;  but  if  four  months  close  application  does  not  effect  it, 
he  shall  give  me  up.  I  intend  to  be  beforehand  with  him  and 
dismiss  him  by  that  time,  or  whenever  I  find  myself  incurable. 

Close  application  won  the  day,  and  Wolfe  became  an  excellent 
dancer. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  \2th  December,  1762. 

Dear  Madam, — I  sit  down  to  write  a  letter  to  you  which,  if 

it  does  not  entertain  you,  will  convince  you,  at  least,  that  I  think 

of  you,  and  remember  your  kindness.     If  I  should  imitate  the 

practice  of  this  country,  I  should  study  how  to  talk,  how  to 

persuade  you  that  I  am  the  thing  I  am  not ;  but  my  experience 

tells  me  that  I  shall  succeed  better  by  doing  what  is  right  than 

by  a  handsome  speech  of  empty  consequence.     There  are  men 

that  only  desire  to  shine,  and  that  had  rather  say  a  smart  thing 

than  do  a  great  one;  there  are  others — rare  birds — that  had 

rather  be  than  seem  to  be.     Of  the  first  kind  this  country  is  a 

well-stored  magazine;  of  the  second,  our  own  has  some   few 

examples.     A  Frenchman  that  makes  his  mistress  laugh  has  no 

favour  to  ask  of  her;  he  is  at  the  top  of  his  ambition.     Our 

^  It  was  not  until  some  years  later  that  Jonas  Hanway,  defying  the  jeers 
of  the  populace_,  strolled  through  London  carrying  an  umbrella,  derided,  it  is 
true,  but  dry. 


FOUR  MASTERS   A   DAY  195 

countrymen  are  too  grave,  too  sanguine,  too  intent,  to  be  satisfied 
with  such  success. 

I  hear  a  piece  of  news  from  England  that  gives  me,  and  all 
of  us,  great  concern.  We  are  told  that  Lord  Harcourt  and  the 
Bishop  of  Norwich  have  resigned.  Could  Mr.  Stone  overthrow 
two  such  men  ?  Could  he,  or  anybody  else,  behave  to  them  so 
as  to  oblige  them  to  give  up  the  most  important  charge  in  the 
kingdom  ?  ^  Somebody  more  subservient,  perhaps,  is  to  be 
placed  ;  somebody  who  will  lead  the  pupils  to  proper  purposes, 
and  bring  them  to  think  that  only  one  set  of  men  are  fit  to 
govern  the  kingdom.  J^enrage,  as  the  French  say  when  they 
are  provoked,  that  my  trusty  Lord  Harcourt  is  deposed.  He 
had  the  general  voice  of  the  people  for  him,  and  nobody  was 
thought  so  proper  for  that  high  office. 

I  told  my  uncle  Wat  that  I  had  four  masters  every  day, 
which  he  does  not  think  sufficient !  His  concern  for  me  goes  so 
far  as  to  make  him  wish  that  I  had  no  time  to  eat  or  sleep.  I 
have  been  forced  to  pacify  his  rage  for  improvement  with 
assuring  him  that  I  can't  bear  above  so  much  at  a  time.  I'll 
charge  you  with  an  office  of  great  trust.  FU  give  you  power  to 
speak  to  Mr.  Fisher,  or  anybody  else  you  can  think  of,  to  renew 
my  credit,  as  far  as  it  will  go,  about  the  middle  of  next  month. 
It  would  be  almost  as  ungracious  to  want  credit  in  an  enemy's 
country  as  it  would  be  disagreeable  to  want  money  in  a  friend's. 
I  never  think  upon  this  subject  without  recollecting  my  good 
friend  Fitz.,^  and  the  cries  of  poor  Arthur  Loftus,  who  is  afraid 
he  shall  starve  in  my  country-house  if  I  stay  long  at  Paris. 
Your  nephew  Whetham  is  the  best  tempered  youth  that  I  know. 
He  offers  his  respects  to  you. 

I  am,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  22nd  December,  1752. 

Dear  Sir, — I  wish  I  could  send  a  piece  of  tapestry  from  the 
.Gobelins,  or  a  picture  from  the  Palais  Royal,  instead  of  a  letter, 
either  would  be  a  present  worthy  your  reception,  as  either 
would  be  matchless  in  their  kind.     I  had  the  good  fortune  to 

1  The  Rev.  Mr.  Stone  was  the  deputy-governor  under  Lord  Harcourt 
for  the  young  Prince  of  Wales  (afterwards  George  HI),  and  his  brother  Prince 
Edward.  Dr.  Hayter^  Bishop  of  Norwich_,  was  tutor  and  Scott  his  deputy.  A 
curious  dispute  arose  as  to  the  Prince's  education,  detailed  in  the  present 
author's  George  III,  1907. 

2  Lord  Fitzmaurice. 
o  2 


196    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

see  the  manufacture  of  tapestry  at  a  time  when  they  showed  it 
to  an  ambassador.  Then  it  is  that  they  produce  all  that 
invention  and  industry  can  contrive  and  execute.  I  was  a  good 
deal  surprised  to  find  that  the  principal  director  of  that 
ingenious  workmanship  is  a  Scotchman. 

My  friend  Carleton  sends  me  conjectures  about  a  successor  to 
Lord  Harcourt.^  I  am  sorry  any  such  person  is  necessary, 
because  I  think  that  high  office  was  in  fit  hands  before.  It  is 
melancholy  that  in  an  affair  of  such  trust  and  importance  there 
should  be  men  so  placed  and  so  confided  in,  that  the  leaders  are 
in  a  manner  subordinate  to  their  inferiors.  The  French  have 
their  domestic  troubles  too,  as  well  as  ourselves ;  but  theirs  are 
still  of  a  more  serious  kind.  The  clergy  and  people  are  in 
opposite  sentiments  for  the  present,  and  it  will  require  the 
exertion  of  very  great  authority  to  reconcile  them  to  each  other. 
The  ecclesiastics  have  unluckily  been  the  authors  of  almost  all 
the  mischief  that  has  been  done  in  Europe  and  in  America  since 
the  first  introduction  of  Christianity,  and  they  do  in  some  places 
continue  their  evil  practices.  It  is  surprising  that  there  are  so 
few  potentates  in  Europe  that  are  able  to  keep  them  in  any 
order,  and  the  more  surprising  that  the  example  of  these  few 
has  no  effect  upon  the  rest,  notwithstanding  the  visible  difference 
between  a  well-governed  body  of  clergy  and  the  reverse. 

Paris  is  full  of  people ;  that  is,  all  the  company  is  come  in 
from  the  country,  and  an  abundance  of  genteel  persons  of  both 
sexes  are  every  day  exposed  to  public  view.  The  natives  in 
general  are  not  handsome  either  in  face  or  figure;  but  then, 
they  improve  what  they  have.  They  adorn  themselves  to  more 
advantage,  and  appear  with  more  outside  lustre,  than  any  other 
people,  at  least  that  I  have  seen  or  heard  of. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

How  strange  to  reflect  that  a  few  years  before  the  fall  of  the 
French  dominion  in  America,  the  same  small  apartment  should 
have  contained  the  real  ruler  of  France,  and  the  man  who  was  to 
wrest  from  France  its  finest  jewel.  The  picture  is  striking.  La 
Pompadour  seated  before  her  mirror,  while  her  coiffeur  arranges 
her   massy  chevelure,  occasionally  vouchsafing  a   word   or  smile 

1  Lord  Harcourt,  thus  commended  by  Wolfe,  was  afterwards  chosen  by 
young  George  III  to  demand  the  hand  of  Princess  Charlotte  of  Mecklenburg 
Strelitz  in  marriage.  He  became  Lord-Lieutenant  of  Ireland,  and  was  drowned 
accidentally  in  a  well  at  Nuneham  in  1777. 


MADAME  DE  POMPADOUR        197 

to  her  entourage.  Her  eye  rests  upon  the  tall,  youthful  figure  of 
the  young  English  officer.  One  can  fancy  her  asking,  "  Who 
is  that  young  man  ?  "*'  "  That,  madame,  is  Monsieur  Wolfe, 
Lieutenant-Colonel  of  English  Infantry.""  "Wolfe — ah — that  is 
the  same  as  le  Loup ;  a  terrible  name  for  those  mild  blue  eyes  and 
kindly  mouth  !     En  verite^  voiis  mefaites  peur,  M.  Wolfe  ! " 

The  offer  which  came  to  Wolfe  of  a  travelling  military 
tutorship  to  the  young  Duke  of  Richmond  was,  although  a 
lucrative  berth,  not  regarded  by  him  as  "  in  his  line.'"*  If  he  would 
not  take  it  himself,  however,  he  took  pains  to  recommend  an 
intimate  friend,  a  young  officer  who  afterwards  rose  to  great 
distinction,  and  whose  name  and  fame  is  hardly  less  than  Wolfe's 
own,  bound  up  in  the  history  of  Canada  and  the  Empire.  This 
was  Captain  Guy  Carleton,  who  took  part  in  the  conquest  of 
Quebec,  as  Governor  of  Canada,  and  died  Lord  Dorchester. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  January  2nd,  1763. 

Dear  Madam, — I  was  yesterday  at  Versailles,  a  cold  spectator 
of  what  we  commonly  call  splendour  and  magnificence.  A 
multitude  of  men  and  women  were  assembled  to  bow  and  pay 
their  compliments  in  the  most  submissive  manner  to  a  creature 
of  their  own  species.  I  went  through  the  different  apartments 
with  our  Ambassador,  who  did  me  the  honour  to  allow  me  to 
wait  upon  him,  and  saw  him  do  his  part  very  gracefully,  well 
received  by  the  Queen,  the  Dauphin,  the  Dauphiness,  the 
Infanta,  the  Mesdames,  the  Secretary  of  State,  and  lastly  by 
the  Marquise  de  Pompadour,  who  seemed  to  distinguish  him 
from  the  rest  by  her  civilities  and  courtesy.  All  the  courtiers, 
as  in  England,  go  to  court  upon  the  New  Year's  Day,  and  as 
they  are  more  numerous  here  than  there  it  makes  a  very  fine 
show.  The  Duke  of  Richmond  offered  me  a  place  in  his  coach, 
an  honour  that  I  could  not  refuse,  especially  as  Lord  Albemarle 
was  so  kind  as  to  give  me  a  room  at  his  house,  with  invitation 
to  sup  with  him.  Lord  Albemarle  has  proposed  to  present  my 
cousin  Whetham  and  me  to  the  King,  which  I  have  no  objection 
to  but  the  fear  of  the  expense  of  a  new  coat.  However,  as  it 
comes  from  his  Lordship  in  so  handsome  a  manner,  I  don't  think 
it  is  to  be  rejected.  This  is  the  first  time  that  I  have  been  at 
Versailles,  and  luckily  there  was  an  installation  of  a  Knight  of 
the  Order  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  we  were  placed  in  such  a 
manner  in  the  King's  Chapel  by  the  master  of  the  Ceremonies 


198    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

that  no  part  of  the  ceremony  escaped  us.  The  weather  was  so 
severe  that  it  was  impossible  to  see  the  gardens,  or  to  examine 
the  buildings. 

Sir  John  Mordaunt  did  me  the  honour  to  write  to  me  from 
Bath,  where  he  is,  or  has  been  for  his  old  rheumatic  complaint. 
He  touches  lightly  upon  a  certain  subject  in  his  comic  style,  and, 
with  a  jest  upon  the  sex,  wonders  at  my  perseverance.  I  have 
answered  his  letter,  and  have  given  him  to  understand  that  as 
I  did  not  mean  to  conceal  anything  from  him,  I  had  mentioned 
the  affair  to  him,  but  that  I  was  extremely  well  pleased  with  my 
situation,  and  did  not  intend  to  be  troublesome.  The  Duke  of 
Richmond  is  to  have  a  company  in  Lord  Bury's  regiment ;  he 
wants  some  skilful  man  to  travel  with  him  through  the  fortified 
towns  of  the  Low  Countries  and  into  Lorraine.  I  have  proposed 
my  friend  Carleton,  whom  Lord  Albemarle  approves  of ;  but  as 
things  may  take  another  turn,  it  must  not  be  mentioned.  It  is 
reported  at  Paris  that  the  Pretender  has  changed  his  religion. 
We  are  too  well  governed  in  England  to  apprehend  that  or  any 
other  change.  I  believe  he  might  as  well  keep  his  confessor. 
An  acquaintance  of  mine  goes  to  England  in  a  few  days,  and 
takes  with  him  two  black  laced  hoods  for  you,  and  a  vestale  for 
the  neck,  such  as  the  Queen  of  France  wears. 

I  am,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe^s  ''  perseverance  "  deserved  a  better  fate,  but  it  was  hard 
to  erase  Miss  Lawson'^s  image  from  his  heart. 

His  friend  Carleton  got  the  lucrative  post  for  which  Wolfe  had 
recommended  him. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris^  \0  January,  1753. 

Dear  Sir, — There  is  so  much  reason  to  be  satisfied  and  to 
thank  you  for  what  you  have  already  done  for  me,  that  it  would 
ill  become  me  to  require  any  further  supply,  especially  as  you 
tell  me  that  the  granting  of  it  would  be  inconvenient.  I  have 
no  particular  attachment  to  Paris,  the  reason  that  brought  me 
here  is  a  sufficient  one  for  my  stay,  and  I  am  only  sorry  that  my 
time  and  circumstances  are  so  limited.  Anybody  that  knows 
the  <life  I  live  may  give  testimony  that  I  am  not  idle,  but  if 
I  should  break  off  after  three  months'  close  application,  my  time 


■n 


^^t;^?s- 


COLONEL   GUY   CARLETON    (LORD   DOECHESTEU) 
From  a  contemparari/  portrait 


PRESENTED  AT   COURT  199 

will  have  been  entirely  thrown  away,  and  your  money  very  ill 
employed.  You  know,  Sir,  what  difficulties  I  have  had  to  get 
leave  to  come  abroad.  I  never  expect  a  second  indulgence,  and 
therefore  must  not  lose  this  opportunity  though  it  should  cost 
me  many  hours  of  retreat  hereafter. 

The  Duke  has  consented  to  Carleton''s  coming  abroad  to 
attend  the  Duke  of  Richmond  as  a  military  preceptor  in  his 
tour  through  the  fortified  towns  of  the  Low  Countries.  It  will 
be  of  singular  use  to  the  young  man,  and  I  hope  of  great 
service  to  my  friend.  Lord  Falkland,  Mr.  Dawnay,  Whetham, 
and  myself,  were  introduced  yesterday  to  the  King  and  the 
Royal  Family,  and  lastly  to  Madame  Pompadour  and  Monsieur 
de  St.  Contest,  the  minister.  They  were  all  very  gracious  as  far 
as  courtesies,  bows,  and  smiles  go,  for  the  Bourbons  seldom 
speak  to  anybody.  Madame  la  Marquise  entertained  us  at  her 
toilette.  We  found  her  curling  her  hair.  She  is  extremely 
handsome,  and,  by  her  conversation  with  the  Ambassador  and 
others  that  were  present,  I  judge  she  must  have  a  great  deal  of 
wit  and  understanding. 

Exclusive  of  Lord  Albemarle's  being  the  English  Ambassador, 
I  observe  that  at  Versailles  they  pay  a  particular  respect  and 
deference  to  his  person,  which  is  a  proof  that  he  is  extremely  in 
the  King's  good  graces ;  and  I  should  wonder  if  it  was  not  so, 
considering  how  accomplished  a  man  he  is  for  courts,  and  how 
particularly  calculated  he  seems  to  be  for  the  French  nation. 
I  wish  you  both  health,  and  a  happy  New  Year. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Mrs.  Wolfe  does  not  seem  to  have  understood  her  son's  motives 
in  not  offering  himself  as  the  ducal  tutor.     He  enlightens  her. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris^  January  IQth,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — You  have  known  me  long  enough  to 
discover  that  I  don't  always  prefer  my  own  interest  to  that  of 
my  friends.  I  was  asked  if  I  knew  a  military  man  fit  to 
accompany  the  young  Duke,  and  immediately  named  Carleton, 
who  is  appointed  to  attend  him.  It  would  have  been  as  easy 
for  me  to  hesitate  about  the  question  and  afterwards  to  have 
offered  my  services ;  but,  exclusive  of  my  liking  for  Carleton, 
I  don't  think  myself  quite  equal  to  the  task,  and  as  for  the 


200    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

pension  that  might  follow,  it  is  very  certain  that  it  would  not 
become  me  to  accept  it.  I  can't  take  money  from  any  one  but 
the  King,  my  master,  or  from  some  of  his  blood.  The  Duke 
of  Richmond's  friendship  will  be  an  honour  to  me,  provided  he 
turns  out  well,  and  serves  his  country  with  reputation,  which 
I  think  is  very  likely  to  happen.  If  he  miscarries  from  bad 
principles,  I  shall  be  the  first  to  fly  from  his  intimacy. 

Though  I  suppose  myself  recovered  in  a  great  measure  from 
my  disorder  that  my  extravagant  love  for  Miss  Lawson  threw 
me  into,  yet  I  never  hear  her  name  mentioned  without  a  twitch, 
or  hardly  ever  think  of  her  with  indifference.  Every  good 
account  of  her  helps  to  justify  me,  and  the  better  you  know  her, 
the  easier  you'll  find  excuses  for  me.  Pray  tell  Miss  Haren  that 
I'm  obliged  to  her  for  helping  to  convince  you  that  at  least  my 
choice  was  a  good  one.  A  man  may  be  greatly  prepossessed  in 
favour  of  a  lady  without  bringing  many  people  to  be  of  his 
opinion.  My  amour  has  not  been  without  its  use.  It  has 
defended  me  against  other  women,  introduced  a  great  deal  of 
philosophy  and  tranquillity  as  to  all  objects  of  our  strongest 
affections,  and  something  softened  the  disposition  to  severity 
and  rigour  that  I  had  contracted  in  the  camp,  trained  up  as 
I  was  from  my  infancy  to  the  conclusion  of  the  Peace,  in  war 
and  tumult. 

I  am  often  surprised  at  the  little  sensibility  that  I  feel  in 
myself  at  the  sight  of  the  finest  and  fairest  females ;  though  I 
have  seldom  supped  out,  yet  whenever  I  have  it  has  happened  that 
some  of  the  prettiest  women  in  Paris,  and  particularly  one,  was 
at  table.  An  eye  to  subdue  the  hardest  heart  had  much  the 
same  effect  upon  me,  as  if  the  likeness  had  been  drawn  upon 
canvas,  and  set  up  to  look  at ;  but  don't  let  this  discourage  you, 
or  make  you  believe  that  I  have  abandoned  the  whole  sex  for 
one  disappointment.  There  are  times  that  a  good  constitution 
overcomes  all  difficulties. 

My  exercises  go  on  extremely  well.  Monsieur  Fesian,  the 
dancing-master,  assures  me  that  I  make  a  surprising  progress, 
but  that  my  time  will  be  too  short  to  possess  (as  he  calls  it)  the 
minuet  to  any  great  perfection ;  however,  he  pretends  to  think 
that  I  shall  dance  not  to  be  laughed  at.  I  am  on  horseback 
every  morning  at  break  of  day,  and  do  presume  that,  with  the 
advantage  of  long  legs  and  thighs,  I  shall  be  able  to  sit  a  horse 
at  a  hand-gallop.  Lastly,  the  fencing-master  declares  me  to 
have  a  very  quick  wrist,  and  no  inconsiderable  lunge,  from  the 


EXPENSES   IN   PARIS  201 

reasons  aforesaid.     The  General   will   explain  the  word  longe^ 
or  lunge. 

I  pronounce  the  French  tongue,  and  consequently  read  it, 
better  than  when  I  came  ;  but  in  the  capital  of  this  great 
Kingdom,  I  speak  more  English  than  French,  and  therefore 
don''t  do  so  well  as  I  ought.  Thus  I  have  made  my  report  to 
you  concerning  the  reasons  of  my  coming  here,  and  shall  conclude 
my  letter  with  very  hearty  wishes  for  both  your  welfares. 

I  am,  etc., 
J.  Wolfe. 

It  would  seem  that  the  old  General  considered  his  son 
extravagant,  and  from  this  charge  James  defends  himself  in  his 
next  letter. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  January  29,  1763. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  more  concerned  to  be  obliged  to  ask 
money  of  you,  than  you  are  to  give  it,  and  I  should  leave  Paris 
six  weeks  sooner  than  I  intended,  rather  than  distress  you  in 
the  smallest  degree,  if  such  a  step  would  not  destroy  almost 
everything  that  I  have  been  doing  hitherto.  I  told  you  in  my 
last  letter  how  expensive  a  place  this  is,  and  to  prove  it,  I  can 
assure  you  upon  my  honour  that  the  articles  of  play  and 
women  (the  most  extravagant  in  Paris)  have  not  amounted  to 
20  Louis-d'ors,  that  my  tailor''s  bill  for  two  suits  of  Clothes, 
a  frock  and  liveries,  does  not  exceed  seventy  pounds ;  the 
ruffles  that  I  have  been  forced  to  wear,  is  indeed  a  considerable 
expense — the  rest  has  been  paid  for  my  coat  and  lodgings, 
food,  servants,  and  for  the  best  masters,  in  this  kind,  that  this 
city  possesses.  I  believe  there  are  few  men  that  live  in  the 
manner  I  do,  and  though  the  object  of  my  attentions  are  not  in 
themselves  the  most  essential,  they  are  still  such  as  have  their 
uses  in  life  and  may  help  to  advance  me  in  the  army. 

The  fortime  of  a  military  man  seems  to  depend  almost  as 
much  on  his  exteriors  as  upon  things  that  are  in  reality  more 
estimable  and  praiseworthy.  You  may  be  assured  I  have  no 
more  demands  to  make  upon  you,  already  too  well  convinced  of 
your  kindness  and  generosity  to  abuse  either. 

The  good  Bishop  ^  is  at  last  released  from  the  misery  and 
pain  that  he  so  long  laboured  under,  oppressed  by  a  disease  at 
his  time  of  life  incurable.  His  death  is  not  to  be  lamented 
^  The  famous  Dr.  Berkeley,  Bishop  of  Clojme. 


202    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

otherwise  than  as  concerns  his  family.  If  there's  any  place  for 
good  men  hereafter,  I  believe  he  is  at  rest,  and  entirely  free  from 
all  complaints.  By  what  you  have  said  about  matrimony, 
I  judge  you  are  averse  to  it.  However,  there's  a  fit  time,  and 
'tis  commonly  later  with  us  soldiers  than  with  other  men,  for 
two  reasons;  the  first  is  that  in  our  younger  days,  we  are 
generally  moving  from  place  to  place,  and  have  hardly  leisure  to 
fix;  the  other  has  prudence  and  necessity  to  support  it.  We 
are  not  able  to  feed  our  wives  and  children  till  we  begin  to 
decline.  It  must  be  a  solitary  kind  of  latter  life  to  have  no 
relations  nor  objects  to  take  up  our  thoughts  and  affections, — to 
be,  as  it  were,  alone  in  the  world,  without  any  connection  with 
mankind  but  the  tie  of  common  friendships,  which  are  at  best, 
as  you  have  experienced,  but  loose  and  precarious.  Our  tastes 
for  pleasures  and  debauchery  have  an  end,  or  should  have,  when 
the  excuse  or  pretext  of  youth  and  warm  blood  is  no  longer 
allowed  us;  and  one  terrible,  frequent,  and  almost  natural 
consequence  of  not  marrying  is  an  attachment  to  some  woman 
or  other  that  leads  to  a  thousand  inconveniences.     Marshal  Saxe 

died  in  the  arms  of  a  little  w that  plays  upon  the  Italian 

stage, — an  ignominious  end  for  a  conqueror.  Though  I  think 
much  better  of  this  condition  than  most  young  people,  and 
sometimes  imagine  (perhaps  vainly  and  foolishly)  that  it  would 
suit  my  disposition  and  turn  of  mind,  yet  I  may  safely  say 
that  it  won't  produce  any  immediate  consequence.  My  little 
experience  has  made  me  cautious  and  my  circumstances  and 
situation  in  life  direct  me  to  step  slowly  and  circumspectly,  and 
to  sum  up  all,  it  would  be  sufficient  that  you  opposed  it  to 
make  me  desist  as  long  as  I  have  the  possession  of  my  reason. 

I  hope  the  severity  of  the  weather  is  confined  to  the 
continent.  It  has  not  been  known  to  freeze  so  hard  since  the 
Great  Frost.  The  poor  people  suffer  excessively,  not  only  from 
the  want  of  fire,  but,  as  the  navigation  of  the  river  has  been 
stopped,  provisions  of  all  kinds  are  dearer  upon  that  account. 
I  am  a  sufferer  in  particular,  for  as  I  commonly  go  out  at  break 
of  day,  till  lately  that  it  has  been  impossible,  the  cold  seizes  my 
nose  and  fingers,  and  distresses  me  considerably.  I  desire  you 
to  accept  of  my  thanks  and  acknowledgements  for  the  last  mark 
of  your  favour,  and  I  wish  to  convince  you  that  my  greatest 
ambition  is  to  deserve  your  esteem. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 


MISS   LAWSON'S   COLDNESS        203 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  \Zth  February,  1763. 

Dear  Madam, — I  shall  make  but  one  step  from  this  place 
to  the  foot  of  the  mountains,  and  I  shall  hardly  give  you  time 
to  observe  how  many  fine  airs  and  accomplishments  I  have 
picked  up  at  Paris.  The  north-east  wind  that  blows  in  that 
country  will  disperse  all  my  foppery,  and  ribbons  and  feathers, 
and  snuff  and  essence  in  the  air,  and  disorder  my  whole  person, 
so  that  when  I  return  you  will  hardly  discover  me  to  be  a 
coxcomb ;  at  least,  if  it  is  so,  I  shall  try  to  conceal  it  from  you. 

I  had  a  letter  from  my  friend  Gage  ^  last  post,  in  answer  to 
one  that  I  writ  him  by  Lord  Albemarle's  directions.  He  says 
the  little  Maid  of  Honour  is  as  amiable,  and  alas !  (as  he 
expresses  it,  poor  gentleman)  as  cold  as  ever.  What  can  that 
lady  mean  by  such  obstinate  self-denial  ?  or  is  she  as  much 
mistress  of  her  own  as  of  the  hearts  of  all  her  acquaintances  ? 
Is  she  the  extraordinary  woman  that  has  no  weakness  ?  or  happily 
constructed  without  passions  ?  or  lastly,  and  most  likely,  does 
she  bid  her  reason  choose  ?  She  may  push  that  matter  too  far, 
for  common  sense  demonstrates  that  one  should  not  be  a  maid 
— of  honour  too  long.  I  writ  a  long  letter  to  her  imcle  this 
post,  and  send  him  some  books  that  he  desired.  I  touched  upon 
the  tender  string  some  time  ago,  as  I  told  you ;  his  answer  was, 
that  he  was  sorry  to  find  me  so  serious  upon  the  old  story ;  and 
there  the  matter  rests  for  ever. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

We  may  assume  that  something  of  the  foregoing  was  prompted 
by  a  lover's  pique.  Yet  Miss  Lawson's  conduct  was  strange, 
especially  in  view  of  the  tradition  that  secretly  she  had  given  her 
heart  to  Wolfe,  but  that  there  were  impediments  in  the  way  she 
could  not  and  dared  not  disclose. 

If  Wolfe  had  declined  to  accompany  the  Duke  of  Richmond  in 
a  tour  of  foreign  camps,  it  was  not  because  his  desire  to  acquaint 
himself  with  the  methods  and  discipline  of  foreign  armies  was  not 
as  keen  as  ever.  When  he  saw  a  chance  of  achieving  this  wish,  he 
jumped  at  it  instantly,  dreading  at  the  same  time  that  the  stiff- 
necked  Commander-in-Chief,  Cumberland,  would  again  stand  in  his 
way. 

^  The  Hon.  Thomas  Gage_,  afterwards  Viscount  Gage,  Commander-in-Chief 
in  North  America  at  the  beginning  of  the  colonial  revolt. 


204    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  22nd!  FeJmrary,  1763. 

Dear  Sir, — Lord  Albemarle  was  saying  a  few  days  ago  that 

the  French  King  proposes  to  encamp  a  great  part  of  his  army 

early  in  the  summer.     His  lordship  judged  that  it  would   be 

agreeable  to  the  Duke  to  have  an  officer  of  our  troops  sent  to 

see  what  they  were  doing  in  their  camps,  and  he  did  me  the 

honour  to  say  that   he  thought  it  would   be  right   in  me  to 

propose  myself,  not  asking  it  as  a  favour,  but  ready  to  obey  the 

Duke's   command.     The   proposal    agreed    too   well   with    my 

disposition  to  be  neglected,  and  I  writ  immediately  to   Lord 

Bury  to  offer  myself  for  the  service,  and  told  Lord  Albemarle 

that  the  least  hint  from  him  would  have  more  weight  than  all 

that  I  should  be  able  to  say.     Whether  the  project  takes  place 

or  not,  it  may  not   be  amiss  to  be  mentioned  upon  such  an 

occasion  by  the  Ambassador  of  Paris.     The  French  are  to  have 

three  or  four  different  camps ;  the  Austrians  and  Prussians  will 

probably  assemble  some  corps,  so  that  I  may,  before  the  end  of 

the  summer,  have  seen  half  the  armies  in  Europe  at  least,  and 

that,  I  believe,  at  a  very  little  expense.     Lord  Ablemarle  must 

give  me  letters  to  the  Commanders  if  the  Duke  accepts  my  offer, 

but,  to  tell  the  truth,  I  suspect  his  Royal  Highness  will  not. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Our  hero's  fears  were  not  groundless,  as  we  shall  presently  see. 
Meanwhile  he  had  been  in  Paris  nearly  five  months  and  was  already 
beginning  to  weary  of  his  surroundings.  He  had  attained,  to  a 
satisfactory  degree,  that  which  had  brought  him  to  the  French 
capital;  a  facility  in  speaking  the  language  and  some  skill  in 
fencing  and  dancing,  and  felt  that  he  had  added  a  polish  to  his 
general  deportment.  He  therefore  looked  forward  all  the  more 
eagerly  to  further  travel  on  the  continent  which  would  add  to  his 
professional  experience.  Towards  the  close  of  his  stay  his  mother 
wrote  him  that  his  aunt,  Mrs.  Abthorpe,  whose  marriage  we  have 
before  noted,  had  become  a  rabid  convert  to  Wesleyism,  her 
conduct  being  no  doubt  on  a  par  with  many  of  those  who  about  this 
time  fell  under  the  spell  of  the  great  Revivalists. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  \st  March,  1763. 

Dear  Madam, — If  the  air  of  Blackheath  has  been  as  sharp  as 

that  of  Paris,  I  don't  wonder  at  your  complaints,  nor  that  you 


PARIS   CUSTOMS  205 

give  it  as  a  reason  for  not  writing.  We  ^had  a  little  interval  of 
mild  weather,  and  now  the  cold  is  returned  more  dangerously, 
though  less  severe.  They  have  little  spring  in  this  country; 
from  cold  and  very  wet  it  suddenly  changes  to  excessive  heat. 
What  a  melancholy  account  you  give  of  Mrs.  Abthorpe,  her 
imhappy  fanaticism  preying  upon  weak  nerves.  A  conscience 
at  rest  and  free  from  guilt,  with  a  tolerable  portion  of  health, 
and  moderate  circumstances,  are  the  utmost  bounds  of  our 
felicity.  If  we  would  be  happy  here  below,  these  are  the 
objects,  and  no  further ;  refinements  in  religion,  or  any  pursuit 
of  exquisite  pleasures,  throw  us  quite  out  of  the  road  of  peace. 

Whetham  has  gone  to  Flanders  ;  from  thence  he  goes  into 
Holland,  back  to  Calais,  and  so  home.  What  he  will  do  with 
himself  till  he  is  thirty  years  of  age,  or  till  he  marries,  I  am  at 
a  loss  to  guess.  It  is  a  misfortune  not  to  have  an  employment 
or  profession  of  some  kind  or  other  to  fill  up  the  intervals  of  our 
time.  To  live  merely  for  the  sake  of  eating,  drinking,  etc., 
without  the  prospect  of  any  business,  or  of  being  useful,  is,  in 
my  mind,  a  heavy  condition.  I  was  invited  to  a  ball  last  night, 
where  I  saw  some  of  the  best  company  in  Paris,  and  some  of  the 
handsomest  women.  At  this  season  of  the  year  the  people  of 
the  first  condition  give  balls  by  turns,  and  do  it  in  a  very 
genteel  manner.  Instead  of  tea  and  coffee  they  give  ice,  orgeat, 
lemonade,  oranges,  and  sweetmeats,  and  in  the  morning 
(commonly  by  daylight)  they  have  all  sorts  of  cold  meats. 
I  never  stay  to  see  them  eat,  though,  I  believe,  it  would  not  be 
the  least  diverting  part  of  the  entertainment,  for  the  ladies  are 
well  bred,  delicate,  and  genteel.  They  are,  nevertheless,  a  little 
inclined  to  gluttony,  and  are  troubled  with  frequent  indigestions. 
The  women  at  these  balls  wear  a  sort  of  domino,  or  rather  gown 
made  of  that  kind  of  light  silk,  slightly  trimmed,  with  sleeves  of 
a  very  particular  make,  falling  near  a  yard  behind  them  from 
the  elbows.  Their  hair  is  either  combed  behind,  with  little 
curls  before,  or  their  heads  are  all  over  curls,  and  an  abundance 
of  diamonds  about  their  heads  and  necks.  They  dance  genteelly, 
and  I  think  their  country  dances  preferable  to  ours ;  first 
because  there  is  a  greater  variety  of  figure  and  step,  more  easy 
dancing,  and  they  are  not  so  tedious.  They  dance  four  couples 
at  a  time  and  succeed  each  other,  then  partners  change  every 
dance.  Some  of  the  men  are  prettily-turned,  and  move  easily 
and  gracefully.  They  have  in  general  good  faces  and  fine  hair, 
but  they  have  generally  bad  limbs,  and  are  ill-shaped.     I  speak 


206    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

of  the  nobility  and  those  that  are  born  or  commonly  live  in 
Paris,  for  in  the  provinces  remote  from  the  capital,  men  are  of 
a  better  figure. 

The  Lent  that  succeeds  the  Carnival  puts  an  end  to  all  these 
pleasures,  the  delight  and  occupation  of  the  younger  people  of 
Paris.  Their  thoughts  are  entirely  employed  upon  the  figure 
they  are  to  make  in  public,  their  equipages  and  dress ;  and  their 
entertainments  within  consists  of  luxurious  suppers  and  deep 
play.  Some  of  them  are  elegant  enough  to  be  pleased  with 
music,  and  they  all  sing  well.  A  few  there  are — a  very  small 
number — that  read  and  think.  I  begin  to  be  tired  of  Paris. 
The  English  are  not  favourites  here ;  they  can't  help  looking 
upon  us  as  enemies,  and  I  believe  they  are  right.  The  best  and 
ablest  men  amongst  them  respect  the  nation,  admire  the  Govern- 
ment, and  think  we  are  the  only  men  in  Europe  that  act  like 
men.  This  party  must  be  very  inconsiderable,  and  very  secret. 
I  forgot  to  tell  you  formerly  that  the  laced  handkerchief  that 
I  bought  did  not  go  with  the  hoods,  but  you'll  have  it. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  would  have  been  impossible  for  an  observer  like  Wolfe  not 
to  have  been  struck  by  the  entire  artificiality  of  the  French 
social  fabric  as  it  then  existed  in  France.  Compare  his  impres- 
sions of  the  dissatisfaction  of  the  community,  the  admiration  of 
the  thinking  minority  for  English  institutions  with  those  of  later 
travellers  much  nearer  the  brink  of  the  Revolution  precipice. 

Wolfe  was  not  left  long  in  suspense  about  the  permission  to 
visit  the  continental  armies.  It  appears  in  the  first  place  that  his 
parents  looked  coldly  upon  the  project,  for  the  same  reasons  that 
have  previously  been  mentioned,  and  also  because  they  may  have 
thought  that  their  son's  holiday  had  lasted  long  enough,  and  was 
sufficiently  expensive.  But  it  was  Lord  Bury  who  conveyed  the 
unwelcome  refusal.  He  too  probably  thought  his  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  had  had  sufficient  holiday. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Paris,  Qth  March,  1763. 

Dear  Sir, — Lord  Bury  surprised  me  a  few  days  ago 
with  H.R.H.  the  Duke's  orders  to  return  to  England  even 
before  my  leave  of  absence  expires.  I  think  I  told  you  that  I 
asked  and  begged  to  continue  till  the  20th  of  April :  this  is 
refused,  and  I  am  to  hasten  home.     I  dare  not  disobey  openly, 


SUMMONED   HOME  207 

but  I  will  venture  as  far  as  a  slight  reprimand.  There's  an 
inconceivable  obstinacy  in  this  way  of  proceeding,  a  minute 
exactness  that  is  quite  unnecessary  and  excessively  disagreeable. 
Everybody  knows  how  difficult  it  is  to  get  out  of  England,  and 
yet  they  won't  allow  us  to  make  use  of  the  opportunity  that 
offers,  and  that  perhaps  can  never  occur  again.  Twenty  days  or 
a  month  to  me  at  this  time  is  inestimable,  the  season  and  situa- 
tion of  my  affairs  considered.  A  Major  and  an  Adjutant  (if  the 
Colonel  is  to  be  indulged  himself)  are  not  to  be  considered  as 
equal  to  the  great  task  of  exercising,  in  our  frivolous  way,  a 
battallion  or  two  of  soldiers  ! — men  whose  duty  and  business  it 
is,  and  who  must  know  that.  "  His  Royal  Highness  expects  and 
orders  me  to  tell  you  to  be  with  the  regiment  by  the  time  they 
assemble."  These  are  the  terms  of  his  lordship's  letter,  and  he 
goes  on  to  inform  us  that  he  believes  the  companies  will  be 
collected  towards  the  latter  end  of  this  month.  Notwithstand- 
ing these  hints,  I  shaVt  be  in  England  before  the  7th  or  8th  of 
April,  and  the  only  one  thing  that  gives  me  any  satisfaction  or 
reconciles  it  to  me  is,  that  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  paying 
my  duty  to  you  and  to  my  mother ;  and  though  the  time  that  I 
shall  be  with  you  will  be  very  short,  those  few  days  will  make 
me  some  amends  for  the  many  disagreeable  ones  that  are  to 
follow. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

There  came  a  further  letter  from  Lord  Bury,  which  makes  his 
return  imperative. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  l^th  March,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — A  second  letter  that  I  have  received  from 
Lord  Bury  (in  answer  to  the  offer  that  I  made  to  go  to  the 
French  and  German  armies),  has  cleared  up  everything  and 
made  it  very  plain,  that  I  must  hasten  to  the  Regiment.  He 
tells  me  that  he  himself  don't  go  do^\Ti  to  Scotland  this  year, 
and  he  mentions  a  fit  of  an  apoplexy  that  seized  the  Major  some 
time  ago  and  has  impaired  his  health  considerably.  Could  I  have 
supposed  so  much  indulgence  and  so  much  partiality,  or  had  I 
known  that  the  Major  had  been  out  of  order,  I  should  not  have 
begged  the  small  addition  of  twenty  days  to  my  leave  of  absence, 
nor  proposed  what  I  did.    As  I  shall  set  out  in  the  beginning  of 


208    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

April  and  as  that  time  draws  near,  I  must  desire  you'll  be  so 
good  to  keep  any  letters  that  may  be  directed  to  me  till  I  come. 
I  hope  John  has  found  some  opportunity  of  sending  my  dog  to 
the  Regiment  and  that  he  has  executed  all  the  other  com- 
missions you  have  charged  him  with.  If  you  have  any  commands 
for  me  on  this  side,  I  beg  to  know  them  immediately  that  they 
may  be  obeyed  to  your  wish.  I  make  my  letter  short  because 
there  is  several  to  write.  I  hope  to  find  you  both  in  perfect 
health  ;  my  duty  to  my  Father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 
J.  W. 

On  the  eve  of  departure  he  received  a  letter  from  his  mother 
expressing  the  General's  apprehensions  about  the  now  abandoned 
tour.  He  was  afraid  his  son  might  have  been  tempted  by  an  offer 
in  the  service  of  the  great  Frederick. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Paris,  March  22nd,  1763. 

Dear  Madam, — I  beg  you  to  remember  how  the  undertaking 
I  spoke  of  was  proposed,  and  by  whom,  whether  it  was  in  my 
power  to  refuse  it  as  it  was  offered,  supposing  that  I  had  not 
liked  the  project.  I  mentioned  to  you  that  the  ambassador  was 
to  have  given  me  letters  for  the  commanders  to  our  ministers  in 
Germany,  and  my  business  was  to  see  only  if  there  were  anything 
new  amongst  them,  and  therefore  there  was  no  risk.  You  may 
believe  I  should  never  undertake  anything  of  this  kind  if  there 
was  reason  to  apprehend  what  my  father  seems  to  think,  nor 
would  I  throw  away  my  time  if  it  could  be  no  manner  of  use. 
As  to  the  article  of  expense  I  proposed  to  do  it  upon  my  pay, 
because  I  could  not  in  reason  require  more  than  has  been  already 
done  for  me. 

I  should  have  been  oftener  at  Madame  Haren's  if  her  grand- 
daughter's illness  had  not  shut  her  door.  She  is  the  most 
agreeable  lady  of  fourscore  that  I  have  ever  met.  It  is  very 
polite  of  her  to  speak  handsomely  of  me,  because  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  be  less  known  to  her  than  I  am.  But  you  know 
how  little  it  costs  the  French  to  be  civil.  My  letters  from 
Scotland  came  to  me.  The  extraordinary  direction  covered  a 
petition  from  a  very  good  woman,  who  desires  me  to  write  to  a 
friend  in  her  favour.  The  women  of  the  regiment  take  it  into 
their  heads  to  write  me  sometimes,  and  their  letters  are  really 


HIS   SOLDIERS'  WIVES  209 

curious.     I  have  a  collection  of  them  somewhere  that  would 
make  you  laugh.^ 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

1  One  of  these  has  been  preserved  :  a  curious  proof  of  the  quasi-paternal 
relation  in  which  Lieut. -Colonel  Wolfe  stood  toward  his  men. 

CoLLONEL, — Being  a  True  Noble-heart' d  Pittyful  gentleman  and  Officer 
your  Worship  will  excuse  these  few  Lines  concerning  the  husband  of  ye 
undersigned^  Sergt.  White,  who  not  from  his  own  fault  is  not  behaving  as 
Hee  should  towards  me  and  his  family,  although  good  and  faithfull  until  the 
middle  of  November  last.  .  .  .  Petition  of  Anne  White. 


X 

ADIEU  TO   SCOTLAND 

What  change  of  environment  in  Europe  then  so  striking  as 
that  from  Paris  to  Glasgow !  Wolfe  left  the  French  capital 
before  March  had  drawn  to  a  close,  and  after  a  brief  sojourn 
at  Blackheath  with  his  parents,  set  out  by  post-chaise  again 
for  Scotland.  The  situation  there  greeting  him  let  himself 
relate — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow,  22nd  April,  1753. 

Dear  Sir, — It  is  almost  impossible  to  suffer  more  than  I 
have  done  upon  the  road,  and  quite  impossible  to  find  a  regiment 
in  more  melancholy  circumstances  than  we  are.  Officers  ruined, 
impoverished,  desperate,  and  without  hopes  of  preferment ;  the 
widow  of  our  late  Major  and  her  daughter  in  tears  ;  his  situation 
before  his  death  and  the  effects  it  had  upon  the  corps,  with  the 
tragical  end  of  the  unhappy  man  in  everybody''s  mouth ;  an 
ensign  struck  speechless  with  the  palsy,  and  another  that  falls 
down  in  the  most  violent  convulsions.  He  was  seized  with  one 
the  first  night  I  came  to  the  regiment  (after  supper)  that  so 
astonished  and  affected  all  that  were  present,  that  it  is  not  to 
be  described.  I  should  have  fallen  upon  the  floor  and  fainted, 
had  not  one  of  the  officers  supported  me,  and  called  for  im- 
mediate relief ;  and  this,  as  well  as  I  can  remember,  for  the  first 
time  in  my  life.  Some  of  our  people  spit  blood,  and  others  are 
begging  to  sell  before  they  are  quite  undone ;  and  my  friend 
Ben  will  probably  be  in  jail  in  a  fortnight.  In  this  situation 
we  are,  with  a  martinet  and  parade  major  to  teach  us  the  manual 
exercise  with  the  time  of  the  First  Regiment. 

To  leave  this  unpleasant  subject  for  one  that  concerns  me 
much  less.  I  must  tell  you  that  I  was  beat  to  pieces  in  the  new 
close  post-chaises  ;  machines  that  are  purposely  constructed  to 
torture  the  unhappy  carcases  that  are  placed  in  them.  I  was  at 
length  forced  to  have  recourse  to  post-horses  ;  as  they  had  been 
accustomed  to  wear  harness,  and  to  be  supported  by  stronger 
powers  than  my  arms,  I  was  every  minute  in  danger,  and  fell 

210 


FISHING  PROSPECTS  211 

twice,  at  the  hazard  of  my  neck.  Add  to  this  that  the  move- 
ments of  these  brutes  were  so  rude,  that  I  bled  to  the  saddle. 
Ill  short,  it  is  not  possible  to  travel  more  disagreeably,  nor  enter 
into  a  more  unpleasing  task  than  the  present ;  and  this,  as  you 
may  believe,  not  at  all  at  my  ease,  without  horses,  or  other 
means  to  dissipate  or  divert. 

I  saw  my  uncle  Brad,  in  Yorkshire ;  he  tells  me  he  writ  to 
my  mother,  but  never  received  an  answer  from  her.  He  was  far 
from  being  well  when  I  saw  him.  I  forgot  to  ask  for  franks  of 
the  senators  of  my  acquaintance,  so  that  you  must  pay  more  for 
my  letters,  by  far,  than  they  are  worth.  We  march  out  of  this 
dark  and  dismal  country  early  in  August.  By  that  time  I 
imagine  that  ambition,  and  the  desire  to  please,  will  be  utterly 
extinguished  and  lost  from  amongst  us.  I  did  not  hear,  till  I 
came  here,  that  his  Majesty  sent  his  thanks  in  particular  to 
Lord  Bury's  regiment  for  their  behaviour  in  the  Highlands ; 
and  immediately,  I  mean  a  month  or  two,  or  three  perhaps, 
afterwards,  Major  Wilkinson  steps  in. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe.    " 

He  lets  us  see  that  he  is  as  great  a  dog  lover  as  ever — Juvenis 
gaiideat  canihus — and  probably  one  of  the  first  Englishmen  to  go 
in  for  Highland  sport,  with  rod  and  gun,  before  such  diversion 
became  a  regular  feature  of  the  annual  round.  Although  he  is 
far  from  well  and  scarce  more  enamoured  of  Scotland,  he  certainly 
seems  in  better  spirits. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  13M  May,  1763. 
Dear  Madam, — We  are  all  sick,  officers  and  soldiers.  I  am 
amongst  the  best,  and  not  quite  well.  In  two  days  we  lost  the 
skin  off  our  faces,  and  the  third  were  shivering  in  great  coats. 
Such  are  the  bounties  that  Heaven  has  bestowed  upon  this 
people,  and  such  the  blessings  of  a  northern  latitude.  My 
cousin  Goldsmith  has  sent  me  the  finest  young  pointer  that 
ever  was  seen ;  he  eclipses  Workie,  and  outdoes  all.  He  sent 
me  a  fishing-rod  and  wheel  at  the  same  time,  of  his  own  work- 
manship that  are  inestimable.  This,  with  a  salmon  rod  from 
my  uncle  Wat,  your  flies,  and  my  own  guns,  puts  me  in  a 
condition  to  undertake  the  Highland  sport  in  June,  and  to 
adventure  myself  amongst  mountains,  lakes,  and  wildest  wastes. 

P  2 


212    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

It  would  take  time  to  relate  the  variety  of  our  amusements 
here ;  but  my  share  of  the  entertainments  might  be  shortly  told. 
We  have  plays ;  we  have  concerts ;  we  have  balls,  public  and 
private ;  with  dinners  and  suppers  of  the  most  execrable  food 
upon  earth,  and  wine  that  approaches  to  poison.  The  men 
drink  till  they  are  excessively  drunk.  The  ladies  are  cold  to 
everything  but  a  bagpipe ; — I  wrong  them,  there  is  not  one  that 
does  not  melt  away  at  the  sound  of  an  estate ;  there's  the  weak 
side  of  this  soft  sex.  I  have  bought  a  horse  for  £1^  a  horse 
that  was  never  meant  to  move  under  the  dignity  of  a  commander 
of  an  old  legion ;  but  there  are  times  when  our  greatness  lets 
itself  down  a  little, — it  was  very  near  walking  afoot,  and  can  yet 
hardly  be  said  to  rise  above  the  ground. 

I  see  by  the  papers  that  General  Guise  has  got  the  govern- 
ment of  Berwick.  My  father  had  better  pretensions  than  that 
extraordinary  person.  I  wish  he  would  try;  there  might  be 
some  advantage  even  from  being  refused.^  I  told  Lord  Bury 
that  my  observation  pointed  out  to  me  that  to  do  one's  duty 
well,  and  not  to  talk  of  it,  was  the  roundabout  way  to  prefer- 
ment, and  that  I  did  not  believe  that  a  man  could  serve  into 
favour ;  to  which  one  might  have  added,  that  'tis  better  to  tell 
a  story  than  fight ;  better  bow  than  be  honest !  This  is  as  it 
always  has  been  in  courts,  and  ever  will  be.  The  men  that  are 
forward  to  ask  are  supposed  to  have  titles,  and  military  men,  of 
all  others,  should  be  the  oftenest  in  the  path  of  promotion.  I 
wish  you  both  health  and  riches ;  but  one  may  almost  as  well  be 
sick  as  poor. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  horse  humorously  alluded  to  in  the  foregoing  may  have 
been  the  same  as  that  remembered  by  a  venerable  Glasgow  lady 
who  survived  the  young  Lieutenant-Colonel  nearly  seventy  years. 
She  recollected  quite  well  having  seen  Wolfe  on  one  occasion  at 
Capelrig  (Mr.  Barclay's,  ten  miles  from  Glasgow),  where  she  was 
staying  when  a  girl.     "  He  rode  up  the  avenue  to  pay  a  visit,  on 

*  Although  hardly  fit  for  field  service,  old  General  Wolfe  was  a  candidate 
for  any  lucrative  military  post  that  the  Government  might  have  at  its 
disposal.  General  Guise  was  commonly  regarded  in  the  army  as  an  intrepid 
madman^  addicted  to  uttering  the  most  absurd  nonsense.  At  a  London 
dinner-party,  he  solemnly  maintained  that  the  Newcastle  colliers  fed  their 
children  with  fire-shovels  in  lieu  of  spoons. — Walpole  to  Mann,  October  6, 
1764. 


DUCHESS   OF   HAMILTON  213 

a  very  spirited  grey  charger  which  plunged  violently,  and  the 
inmates  were  afraid  he  would  be  thrown.  He  was  an  excellent 
horseman,  however,  and  maintained  himself  well  in  the  saddle ; 
then  dismounting  gracefully,  he  entered  the  mansion,  and  con- 
versed for  some  time  mth  great  politeness.  He  remounted  his 
charger  and  rode  off  to  Glasgow.  These  circumstances  and 
Wolfe's  subsequent  fame,  fixed  his  appearance  firmly  in  the  lady's 
memory,  and  my  informant  often  heard  her  relate  these  particulars,"  ^ 

To  HIS  Father. 

2Uh  May,  1763. 

Dear  Sir, — I  begin  to  have  an  inconceivable  aversion  to 
writing,  and  to  all  business  that  I  am  not  absolutely  forced 
upon,  and  yet  now  and  then  a  spark  breaks  out  through  the 
surrounding  obstacles,  but  is  almost  smothered  in  the  birth.  I 
have  hardly  passion  enough  of  any  kind  to  find  present  pleasure 
or  feed  future  hope,  and  scarce  activity  to  preserve  my  health. 
The  love  of  a  quiet  life,  I  believe,  is  an  inheritance  which  is 
likely  to  strengthen  with  my  years  ;  that,  and  the  prospect  your 
example  gives  me, — that  a  man  may  serve  long  and  well  to  very 
little  purpose,  and  make  a  sacrifice  of  all  his  days  to  a  shadow, — 
seems  to  help  my  indifference,  and  to  incline  me  to  get  off  quietly 
and  betimes  to  the  edge  of  the  forest.  If  a  man  tries  on  to  forty 
and  something  more,  I  think  he  does  very  handsomely  ;  and 
then,  not  finding  it  to  answer,  he  may  make  his  bow  and  retire. 
Our  sickly  infirm  General  could  not  proceed  to  review  the  corps 
in  the  north.  He  came  back  to  Edinburgh  from  Perth,  and  he 
has  since  been  in  extreme  danger.  People  that  see  him  think 
that  he  is  always  a-dying,  and  yet  the  good-natured  old  man 
struggles  with  all  and  still  holds  out ;  but  this  mortal  combat 
can't  be  for  long.  Your  regiment,  is,  I  hear,  upon  its  march  to 
Fort  George.  That  duty  has  some  inconvenience,  particularly 
to  the  officers,  but  it  is  of  great  use  to  the  men,  and  keeps  them 
healthy. 

I  dined  a  few  days  ago  with  the  famous  Duchess  of  Hamilton.^ 
They  live  about  ten  miles  from  Glasgow,  and  the  Duke  is  civil 
to  us.  The  lady  has  lost  nothing  of  her  bloom  and  beauty,  is 
very  well  behaved,  supports  her  dignity  with  tolerable  ease  to 
herself,  and  seems  to  be  justly  sensible  of  her  good  fortune. 

1  Buchanan's  Glasgaw,  Past  and  Present,  vol.  iii.  p.  759. 

2  Elizabeth  Gunning  had  married  the  Duke  in  the  previous  year,  when 
she  was  but  twenty. 


214     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

After  our  detachments  are  sent  out,  I  propose  to  go  for  a 
month  to  the  Highlands.  Our  people  work  upon  the  side  of 
Loch  Lomond,  in  Argyleshire,  where  the  country  is  beautifully 
rough  and  wild.  There's  plenty  of  game,  and  the  rivers  are 
full  of  fish.  I  intend  to  establish  myself  at  the  upper  end  of 
the  lake,  and  live  upon  milk  and  butter,  as  the  inhabitants  do. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Here  we  have  some  springtime  reflections. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  June  1st,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — Your  house  and  your  garden  and  your  park 
(I  call  it  yours,  as  you  have  the  possession  of  it)  must  be  vastly 
pleasant  at  this  time  of  the  year.  Nature  puts  on  her  best 
appearance  at  this  season,  and  every  production  of  the  earth  is 
now  in  the  highest  beauty.  The  beasts  have  their  new  coats, 
and  the  birds  their  fine  feathers  ;  and  even  our  species,  for 
whose  pleasure  all  these  seem  to  have  been  intended,  are  properly 
disposed  for  the  enjoyment  of  them.  Without  doubt  you  walk 
a  good  deal  in  the  fresh  air,  and  taste  the  blessings  that  a 
bounteous  Maker  has  bestowed.  Happy  those  that  have  justice 
and  piety  enough  to  acknowledge  and  to  thank  the  liberal  hand 
that  gives  them  !  I  have  had  frequent  occasions  to  mention  to 
you  the  many  changes  of  weather  we  are  subject  to  in  this 
country,  because  I  have  frequently  suffered  from  them.  At 
present  I  don't  complain  ;  I  amassed  such  a  store  of  health  in 
France  that  I  hope  it  will  last  during  our  stay  here,  though  I 
am  persuaded  the  consumption  will  be  very  considerable. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

On  the  Western  side  of  Loch  Lomond,  in  a  picturesque 
situation,  with  the  slopes  of  Ben  Lomond  rising  in  the  distance 
beyond  the  lake,  is  Inverdouglas,  or,  as  now  written,  Inveruglas. 
Here  in  the  month  of  June  Wolfe  and  five  companies  halted. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Camp  of  Inverdouglas,  June  26th,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — We  are  encamped  with  five  companies  of  the 
regiment  that  are  working  on  the  roads.  It  will  be  late  in  August 
before  we  return  to  Glasgow,  and  consequently  we  can't  begin  our 


HIGHLAND   ROAD   BUILDING      215 

march  until  September.  Though  we  are  not  much  above  twenty 
miles  from  the  Low  Countries,  yet  I  think  this  part  of  the  High- 
lands is  as  wild  as  any  that  I  have  seen.  We  are  upon  the  side 
of  a  great  lake,  bordered  round  with  exceeding  high  mountains 
whose  tops  are,  for  the  most  part,  barren — either  bog  or  rock ; 
but  at  the  first  of  these  hills  there  is  a  good  deal  of  wood,  some 
grass,  and  very  little  corn.  A  man  in  health  might  find  a  good 
deal  of  entertainment  in  fair  weather,  provided  he  has  strength 
to  climb  up  the  mountains,  and  has  keenness  to  pursue  the  game 
they  produce. 

I  am,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wade,  whatever  we  may  think  of  his  generalship,  was  the 
pioneer  road-builder  in  Scotland,  and  deserves  due  credit  for  the 
work  he  did  between  1715  and  1730.  He  succeeded  in  convincing 
his  superiors  of  the  importance  of  the  principle  which  helped, 
as  much  as  their  legions,  to  make  the  Romans  masters  of  the  world. 
Soon  after  the  second  rebellion  had  been  crushed  the  authorities 
resolved  to  go  on  with  the  work  on  a  large  scale.  Lieutenant- 
General  Watson  was  placed  in  charge  and  a  beginning  made  at 
Fort  Augustus  in  1747.  Associated  with  this  officer  was  General 
Roy,  who  was  ordered  to  make  a  preliminary  ordnance  survey. 
Parties  of  soldiers  were  drafted  from  the  several  corps  to  assist  in 
the  work,  which  lasted  in  different  parts  of  the  Highlands  for 
many  years,  each  season's  camp  terminating  in  rude  military 
festivities,  eating,  drinking  and  sports.  Before  these  military 
road-makers  moved  on  they  were  wont  to  erect  a  wayside  tablet, 
commemorating  the  date  and  the  name  of  the  regiment.  One  or 
two  of  these  tablets,  put  up  by  Wolfe's  men,  have  since  been 
recovered.  One  was  found  many  years  ago  serving  as  a  hearth- 
stone in  a  farm-house  at  Ardvoirlich.  Others  no  doubt  exist  in  a 
similar  state  or  have  been  used  as  building  materials.  One 
wonders  if  any  of  Wolfe's  bore  inscriptions  such  as  that  "  Rest  and 
be  thankful,"  and  "  A  good  work  finished." 

This  was,  on  the  whole,  a  happy  summer  for  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow^  29^A  Jurw,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — I  think  I  am  not  positively  blind  to  my  own 
infirmities,  but  that  I  oftener  perceive  my  defects  than  I  have 
power  to  correct  or  even  disguise  them  ;  and  there  are  times  and 
particular  situations  in  which  people  are  apter  to  lose  that  power 


216    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

than  at  others.  I  believe  we  are  so  compounded  of  good  and 
bad  that  accidents  easily  incline  the  balance  on  either  side,  and 
I  am  sure  that  none  of  us,  even  the  most  virtuous,  are  entirely 
free  from  faults,  though  some  have  the  art  to  hide  them.  The 
warmth  of  temper,  which  you  so  justly  censure  when  it  breaks 
out  improperly,  is  what  I  depend  upon  to  support  me  against 
the  little  attacks  of  my  brethren  and  contemporaries,  and  that 
will  find  the  way  to  a  glorious,  or  at  least  a  firm  and  manly  end 
when  I  am  of  no  further  use  to  my  friends  and  country,  or  when 
I  can  be  serviceable  by  offering  my  life  for  either. 

Nobody  has  perhaps  more  reason  to  be  satisfied  with  his 
station  and  success  in  the  world  than  myself,  nobody  can  have 
better  parents,  and  I  have  hitherto  never  wanted  friends ;  but 
happiness  or  ease,  which  is  all  we  can  pretend  to,  lies  in  the 
mind  of  nowhere.  A  man  must  think  himself  so  or  imagine  it, 
or  it  cannot  be ;  it  is  not  circumstances,  advancement,  fortune, 
or  good  relations  or  faithful  friends  that  create  it,  'tis  the 
temper,  or  truly  the  force  of  overcoming  one  or  more  of  the 
leading  passions  that  otherwise  must  disturb  us.  These  passions 
seem  to  be  in  our  first  composition  or  in  nature,  and  the  remedy, 
as  you  observe,  in  reason.  But  this  often  fails,  at  least  in  our 
younger  days.  Those  tempers  are  very  ticklish  that  may  under- 
go a  considerable  change  by  any  alteration  of  air,  diet,  or 
exercise,  and  this  I  often  experience.  It  is  most  true  that  no 
one  has  a  better  claim  to  my  care  and  esteem  than  yourself,  and 
no  person  is  more  truly  the  object  of  it ;  but  as  you  have  been 
indulgent  and  kind  hitherto  in  everything  that  you  believed  for 
my  advantage,  so  now  your  indulgence  must  extend  to  overlook, 
or  forgive  at  least,  those  defects  that  are  visibly  in  the  blood, 
and  hard  at  this  time  of  life  to  overcome.  And  if  you  think  I 
have  any  good  qualities  they  may  be  set  in  opposition  to  the 
bad  ones  and  that  is  what  our  feeble  condition  here  seems  in 
justice  to  require. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Then  comes  a  letter  to  the  General  in  which  he  discloses  his 
impecuniosity. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow^  ^th  July,  1763. 

Dear  Sir, — I  do  not  know  which  is  the  greatest  distress  of 
the  two,  to  want  money  or  to  be  forced  to  borrow  it ;  this  I  am 


LOCH   LOMOND  217 

sure  that  it  is  awkward  and  disagreeable  to  ask  a  favour  of  this 
kind  even  of  you,  and  much  more  so  of  anybody  else. 

I  have  been  obliged  to  give  up  my  allowance  for  a  time  to 
clear  my  French  accounts  and  conscience.  When  I  came  from 
London  I  received  a  muster's  pay  from  24th  April,  a  great  part 
of  which  was  spent  upon  my  journey  here.  Since  my  coming  I 
have  lived  at  a  less  expense  than  is  almost  consistent  with  my 
rank,  to  avoid  the  mischief  above  mentioned,  and  yet  I  am  not 
in  condition  to  buy  horses  for  the  march  without  your  assistance. 
I  must  therefore  beg  the  favour  of  you  to  allow  me  to  draw  upon 
your  account  for  ^40,  which  I  believe  and  hope  I  shall  be  able 
to  repay  you  in  January,  or  perhaps  sooner.  I  hate  the  thought 
of  being  in  arrear  with  a  paymaster,  as  it  subjects  one  in  some 
measure  to  him,  and  hurts  the  affairs  of  a  regiment,  and  yet 
this  must  have  been  my  resource  upon  such  an  occasion,  if  I 
had  not  a  better  to  apply  to.  I  am  ashamed  to  address  myself 
to  you  upon  the  article  of  money,  as  you  have  so  recently  given 
me,  in  the  most  generous  manner  more  than  I  could  expect  or 
had  any  title  to  ask,  but,  as  I  mean  honestly  to  return  this  sum 
and  clear  myself  entirely  by  the  next  spring,  I  do  it  with  more 
confidence,  and  I  have  to  plead  that  I  always  pay  my  debts  when 
I  am  able. 

I  go  to-morrow  into  the  Highlands  for  three  weeks  or  a 
month,  for  fresh  air  and  exercise.  The  odours  of  this  place  give 
me  continual  headaches.  My  retreat  is  about  thirty  miles  from 
hence,  near  where  the  five  companies  of  our  regiment  are  at 
work.  I  wish  you  both  much  health.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my 
mother,  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

After  his  brief  holiday  he  thus  wrote  from  the  new  camp — 

To  HIS  Father. 

North-west  Side  of  Loch  Lomond,  *!th  August,  1753. 

Dear  Sir, — Though  there  have  been  great  pains  taken  to 
put  the  regiment  into  order,  yet  for  two  reasons  we  shall  make 
but  a  very  indifferent  appearance  when  His  Royal  Highness 
reviews  us.  The  first  is,  that  our  clothes  are  vastly  damaged  by 
the  work  here  and  by  long  wear  ;  and  the  other,  that  Lord 
Bury  would  have  changed  our  exercise  from  very  quick  to  very 
slow,  so  that  at  present,  in  attempting  to  conform  to  his  Lord- 


218     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

ship's  directions,  we  are  between  the  two,  and  can  neither  do 
one  nor  the  other  as  they  ought  to  be  done.  All  the  soldiers 
know  that  it  is  not  very  material,  but  some  of  those  that  will  be 
present  at  our  review  may  have  other  notions.  These  are 
matters  that  give  me  as  little  concern  as  anybody.  If  a  man 
does  his  duty  to  the  best  of  his  judgment  and  ability,  the 
thoughts  and  reflections  that  arise  from  so  doing  are,  in  my 
opinion,  sufficient  satisfaction.  I  have  been  confined  ever  since 
my  coming  to  this  place  to  within  the  last  few  days,  and  now 
that  I  am  able  to  go  about  the  bad  weather  keeps  me  close.  It 
is  strange  that  neither  temperance  or  exercise  can  preserve  me 
in  any  tolerable  health  in  this  unfriendly  climate.  The  moisture 
of  this  air  overmatches  all  the  precautions  that  I  can  take  to 
resist  its  bad  effects,  and  yet  we  have  had  a  finer  season  in 
Scotland  than  has  been  known  for  many  years. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  seems  strange  to  think  that  the  metropolis  at  this  time  was 
without  a  police  force,  and  wholly  at  the  mercy  of  such  rogues  and 
robbers  as  chose  to  ply  their  vocation.  This  was  more  than  ever 
true  of  the  suburbs,  and  in  this  letter  we  find  Wolfe  anticipating 
that  horse  police  and  foot  patrol  which  followed  upon  the  Bow 
Street  force  established  by  Sir  John  Fielding. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Glasgow,  2Qth  August,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — I  deferred  answering  your  letter  till  my 
return  from  the  Highlands — that  is  till  I  got  out  of  a  dirty 
smoky  hut,  and  free  from  the  noise  of  a  camp.  My  stay  upon 
the  side  of  Loch  Lomond  would  have  been  extremely  agreeable 
and  pleasant  but  for  two  or  three  interfering  accidents.  This 
mixture  of  good  and  evil  waits  upon  us  from  our  introduction 
into  life  to  the  latest  hour ;  the  easiest  are  those  who  have  no 
violent  pursuits,  for  they  are  seldom  disappointed.  The  loss  of 
my  poor  facetious  friend  Loftus  grieves  me ;  he  was  preparing 
to  make  me  a  visit  just  before  he  went  offl^  Since  I  came  here 
I  learned  the  death  of  our  good  General.^  Lord  Cathcart  has 
made  a  judicious  choice,  and  Miss  Hamilton  has  a  fair  prospect 
of  happiness  with  a  man  of  his  worth  and  honour.     There  are 

1  Major  Arthur  Loftus  died  of  fever  July  31st  at  Fort  Augustus. 

2  Lieutenant-General  George  Churchill. 


i 


POLICE   FORCE   SUGGESTED       219 

very  few  young  ladies  that  I  have  met  with  who,  in  my  opinion, 
deserve  better  than  she  does.  If  I  had  not  seen  Miss  Lawson, 
I  should  probably  have  been  in  love  with  Miss  Hamilton.  I 
can't  say  the  lady  would  have  had  a  great  conquest  to  boast  of, 
but  speak  of  it  as  a  proof  of  my  good  taste. 

'Tis  an  unpleasant  thing  to  be  surrounded,  as  you  are,  by  such 
numbers  of  villains ;  whatever  they  do  without  doors,  it  is  to  be 
hoped  they  respect  the  inside  of  houses.  There  must  be  some 
strange  neglect  in  the  magistrates  and  officers  of  justice  in  the 
county,  or  these  robbers  would  not  range  through  it  in  this 
manner  with  impunity.  I  am  surprised  that  in  the  counties 
near  London  they  don't  establish  a  company  of  light  horse  to 
guard  the  public  roads  or  pursue  these  vermin.  They  need  not 
be  military,  but  people  hired  for  that  purpose,  with  good  pay, 
and  entirely  under  the  sherifTs  directions.  There  are  abundance 
of  officers  that  would  be  glad  of  such  employment,  and  proper 
men,  if  they  pay  them  well,  might  easily  be  found.  They  have 
what  they  call  marechausse  in  France  to  protect  travellers,  and 
people  travel  there  in  great  security. 

Elections  are  the  great  business  all  over  the  island,  and  the 
competitors  are  struggling,  not,  I  am  afraid,  for  the  public  good, 
but  for  their  private  interest  and  advantage.  The  Parliament 
House  is  now  the  seat  of  profit,  and  people  generally  seek  a  place 
there  as  they  would  an  income.  We  have  everything  to  fear 
from  these  general  self-interested  views,  but  one  must  hope  that 
these  very  men  who  are  so  sanguine  for  themselves  will  pay  some 
regard  to  their  posterity,  and  leave  things  at  least  in  as  good  a 
condition  as  they  find  them. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

His  Scottish  sojourn  was  now  drawing  to  a  close. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Glasgow,  September  8th,  1753. 
Dear  Sir, — The  first  division  of  our  regiment  marched  out 
of  town  this  morning,  and  I  stay  behind  it  one  day  to  finish  my 
business  and  to  i^Tite  letters.  I  have  got  myself  tolerably  well 
mounted  upon  a  horse  of  poor  Loftus's.  Donnellan  ^  had  bought 
him  at  the  auction,  but  resigned  him  to  me,  knowing  my  necessity. 
I  am  glad  to  find  that  the  promotion  is  gone  in  your  regiment, 

^  Captain  Nehemiah  Donnellan  succeeded  Loftus  as  Major  in  Wolfe's 
regiment. 


220    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

and  that  Mr.  Secretary-of-War  has  consented  to  be  civil  to  you 
on  this  occasion.  Your  demands  upon  them  are  so  just  and 
moderate,  that  you  may  very  well  expect  good  manners  ;  at  least, 
a  person  that  does  not  ask  favour  has  a  right  to  fair  speech. 

I  am  sorry  that  Lord  Cathcart's  affairs  require  so  much 
attention  that  he  must  necessarily  quit ;  he  is  an  officer  of  such 
reputation  that  the  army  loses  considerably  by  his  resignation. 
I  hope,  however,  that  he  will  preserve  his  rank  amongst  us,  and 
that  I  shall,  some  day  or  other,  have  the  honour  to  serve  under 
him.  We  are  so  long  absent,  and  removed  to  so  great  a  distance, 
that  I  am  almost  surprised  to  hear  that  anybody  is  at  the  least 
trouble  to  inquire  about  me,  especially  a  Paris  acquaintance.  I 
am  particularly  obliged  to  Stanhope,  because  his  acquaintance 
is  so  extensive  that  I  might  expect  to  be  lost  in  the  crowd.  He 
is  a  lively,  civil  little  man,  and  has  a  great  store  of  learning  and 
knowledge.  I  beg  my  compliments  to  him.  From  time  to  time 
you  shall  hear  of  our  progress. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 
'  J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe''s  term  in  the  Highlands  was  finally  over.  He  could 
look  back  upon  five  years  of  yeoman  service  amidst  difficult 
surroundings,  where  the  greatest  tact  was  required. 

So  with  drums  beating  and  colours  flying  the  Twentieth  took 
up  its  southward  march  under  the  September  sun.  He  had  six 
years  of  life  left — six  short  years  in  which  to  carve  an  imperishable 
fame.  It  was  the  second  phase  of  the  young  soldier's  career.  On 
September  20  he  turned  his  head  as  he  rode  along  southward  with 
his  tanned  and  dusty  troopers  and  beheld  the  village  of  Gretna 
Green  in  his  rear.     Over  the  Scottish  border  he  never  returned. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Carlisle,  VHth  September,  1753. 
Dear  Madam, — The  last  division  of  our  regiment  passes  the 
Esk  to-morrow,  and  salutes  the  land  of  England  once  more. 
We  begin  our  march  from  Carlisle  on  the  20th,  and  shall  be  at 
Reading  the  16th  of  October,  which  is  a  day  sooner  than  my 
former  calculation.  The  weather  has  been  fair  and  favourable 
as  possible  hitherto,  and  so  warm,  that  we  have  more  the  look 
of  troops  that  came  from  Spain  or  Africa  than  from  the  north. 
We  are  really  a  good  deal  browner  and  more  tanned  than  the 
battalion  from  Minorca  that  relieve  us.     We  are  come  thus  far 


CROSSING   THE   BORDER  221 

in  our  military  rotation,  and  a  good  way  in  the  revolution  of 
our  lives.  The  regiment  has  undergone  as  great  change  as  was 
perhaps  ever  known  in  time  of  peace  and  in  so  short  a  while. 
There  are  some  fifteen  new  officers  to  the  corps,  besides  myself, 
since  the  beginning  of  the  year  1749,  and  there  are  several 
alterations  to  make  that  may  soon  take  place. 

A  mile  on  this  side  of  the  river  that  divides  England  from 
Scotland  one  begins  to  perceive  the  difference  that  labour  and 
industry  can  make  upon  the  face  of  a  country.  The  soil  is 
much  the  same  for  some  space  either  north  or  south,  but  the 
fences,  enclosures,  and  agriculture  are  not  at  all  alike.  The 
English  are  clean  and  laborious,  and  the  Scotch  excessively  lazy 
and  dirty,  though  far  short,  indeed,  of  what  we  found  at  a 
greater  distance  from  the  borders.  Colonel  Stanwix  is  Governor 
of  this  place,  and  I  believe  you  are  acquainted ;  at  least,  he 
inquired  much  after  my  father's  health  and  yours.  He  has  been 
extremely  civil  to  our  people.  The  castle  of  Carlisle  is  a  fortress 
that  ought  by  no  means  to  have  been  given  up  to  the  rebels  in 
the  manner  it  was.  The  present  Governor  would  not,  nor,  I 
dare  say,  ever  will  surrender  it  into  such  hands.  Our  second  is 
just  now  marching  in,  and  that  obliges  me  to  stop  here. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  was  a  slow  march,  as  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  reports — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Warrington,  30^A  September,  1763. 

Dear  Sir, — The  greatest  good-fortune  that  can  happen  to 
people  that  travel  slow  is  to  have  fair  weather,  and  we  have  been 
particularly  lucky  hitherto.  There  has  been  but  one  rainy  day 
since  we  set  out.  As  the  season  advances  we  must  expect  a 
change ;  and  indeed  it  has  begun  this  day,  with  appearances 
that  are  much  against  us.  Men  harden  in  the  air  with  marching, 
as  they  harden  in  iniquity  with  practice.  We  are  to  halt  at 
Warwick  where  Lord  Bury  meets  and  reviews  the  regiment. 
The  men  are  healthy,  and  so  active,  that  they  have  worn  their 
clothes  threadbare.  We  are  no  politicians,  or  we  should  have 
done  as  our  predecessors  the  Fusiliers  did,  that  is,  clothe  four 
months  later  than  usual,  to  appear  clean.  I  do  believe  we  shall 
be  the  most  dirty,  ragged  regiment  that  the  Duke  has  seen  for 
some  years. 

In  Cumberland,  Westmoreland,  and  the  north  of  Lancashire 


222    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

part  of  the  country  is  almost  as  rough  and  barren  as  the  High- 
lands of  Scotland;  but  there  is  a  variety  of  well  cultivated, 
beautiful  spots  intermixed.  Every  day  as  we  move  more  south 
the  country  appears  richer  and  more  delightful ;  and  the  women 
hereabouts,  and  in  this  place  in  particular,  are  surprisingly 
handsome.  They  astonish  us  that  have  been  accustomed  to 
look  at  the  hard-favoured  Scotch  lasses.  They  have  very  pretty 
faces  (I  mean  the  Lancashire  women),  but  they  are  not,  in  the 
towns,  of  such  stature  as  I  expected.  The  peasants  are  straight, 
well  made,  tall,  good-looking  men.  There's  great  quantity  of 
cattle  bred  in  Lancashire,  and  some  horses.  The  gentlemen 
seem  fond  of  hunting  (by  the  quantity  of  hounds  I  judge), 
though  the  country  is  not  best  for  that  sort  of  sport,  as  the 
enclosures  and  fences  are  vastly  strong,  and  the  corn-ground 
very  deep.  Our  march  is  something  more  than  half  over,  and  I 
heartily  wish  it  was  at  an  end,  because  these  slow  movements  are 
not  agreeable  to  my  disposition  of  mind. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Mother. 

Warwick,  IQth  Oct,  '53. 
Dear  Madam, — I  had  the  pleasure  of  receiving  a  letter 
from  my  father  upon  my  arrival  here  with  such  accounts  of  your 
healths  as  I  might  expect,  but  not  exactly  such  as  I  could  wish. 
The  approaching  winter  does  not  give  the  barest  prospect  of 
amendment,  but  we  shall  hope  for  the  best.  If  Lord  Bury  had 
not  thought  proper  to  make  the  Regiment  halt  at  Warwick  the 
first  Division  would  have  been  to-morrow  or  the  next  day  at 
Reading,  as  it  is  we  shan't  all  be  there  till  this  day  sevenight 
and  consequently  shall  dip  further  into  foul  weather,  and  be 
later  in  our  quarters.  His  Lordship  is  a  little  obscure  as  to  his 
intentions  concerning  me.  I  don't  yet  know  whether  I  winter  in 
the  Castle  of  Dover  or  not,  but  shall  probably  be  some  time 
there.  Warwick  is  one  of  the  prettiest  little  towns  in  England, 
and  Lord  Brook's  castle  for  the  situation  and  antiquity  of  it  is 
as  great  a  rarity  as  any  in  the  Kingdom.  The  country  about  here 
is  extremely  beautiful.  We  hunted  yesterday  upon  a  delightful 
plain  and  had  exceeding  fine  sport.  If  there  are  any  letters  be 
so  good  to  put  'em  under  a  trunk  and  direct  'em  to  Reading. 
I  wish  you  both  all  manner  of  good.     My  duty  to  my  Father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc. 

J.  Wolfe. 


HALT   AT   READING  223 

Leaving  "Lord  Brook's  Castle"  behind  them  the  Twentieth 
continued  on  to  Reading. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Reading,  22nd  October,  1753. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  received  a  very  kind  letter  from  my 
mother,  inviting  me  to  her  house,  and  to  a  warm  room  that  she 
promises  to  provide  for  me ;  but  I  am  not  able  to  say  when  I 
can  have  the  pleasure  of  paying  my  duty  to  you  both.  If  our 
route  leads  through  Deptford  and  Greenwich,  I  shall  wait  upon 
you ;  if  not  my  visit  will  be  deferred  till  my  return  from  Dover. 
The  Major  seems  disposed  to  leave  the  regiment,  in  which  case 
I  shall  be  confined  to  it,  because  I  can't,  in  conscience,  assert 
that  I  have  any  weighty  business  to  call  me  away.  And  yet, 
the  prospect  of  passing  a  winter  in  the  castle  of  Dover  ought  to 
quicken  a  man's  invention  to  get  free  for  means.  The  Duke 
reviews  the  regiment  on  Saturday,  in  their  old  clothes ; 
so  that  if  his  Royal  Highness  piques  himself  upon  finery  of 
that  kind,  we  shall  inevitably  be  disgraced.  It  is  true  that  we 
have  numbers,  for  there's  but  five  men  wanting  to  complete; 
but  I  can't  say  much  for  their  beauty  or  fine  performance ;  for 
many  of  them  have  been  separated  from  the  regiment,  and 
others  ought  to  be  severed  from  it  for  ever.  If  we  had  any 
religion  or  piety  or  were  at  all  sensible  of  favour  from  above, 
we  should  be  thankful  for  the  finest  season  that  ever  was.  And 
though  we  are  not,  I  am  sure,  the  objects  of  peculiar  care  of 
Heaven,  yet,  as  we  have  profited  by  the  good  things  bestowed 
upon  mankind  in  general,  we  should  join  with  them  in  acknow- 
ledgements. If  I  stay  much  longer  with  the  regiment,  I  shall 
be  perfectly  cmTupt,  the  officers  are  loose  and  profligate,  and  the 
soldiers  are  very  devils. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

At  Reading  there  was  a  halt  of  a  fortnight,  waiting  for  the 
Duke  to  review  the  regiment.  At  last  the  Lieutenant- Colonel, 
who  was  nervous  about  the  ceremony,  writes  his  mother. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Reading,  Friday,  Ath  Nov.,  1753. 
Dear  Madam, — The  Duke's  illness  has  put  off*  our  Review 
and  of  course  detained  us  here.     I  wish  his  Royal  Highness's 


224    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

martial  spirit  would  submit  itself  to  his  state  of  health,  in  which 
case  he  would  not  persevere  in  his  resolution  of  seeing  us.  It  is 
not  a  farthing  matter,  whether  we  are,  or  are  not  reviewed,  but 
it  is  of  consequence  whether  the  Duke  is  well  or  ill.  His  inten- 
tion is  to  see  the  Regiment  to-morrow,  and  I  am  sorry  for  it 
upon  many  accounts.  We  are  four  or  five  hours  at  exercise 
every  day ;  the  men  of  these  times  have  not  iron  enough  in  their 
constitutions  for  this  work ;  our  ancestors  would  have  perhaps 
done  twice  as  much  in  colder  weather,  without  coughing ;  but 
our  debaucheries  enervate  and  unman  us. 

You  are  ever  very  obliging  and  kind  in  whatever  I  ask  of  you, 
your  visit  to  Mrs.  Brett  is  a  strong  proof  of  it,  and  they  are  not 
more  indebted  to  you  for  the  civility  than  I  am..  I  have  had  a 
letter  from  Charles  expressing  the  satisfaction  that  your  recon- 
ciliation to  his  family  gave  him. 

The  first  division  of  our  regiment  marches  on  Monday,  so 
towards  the  latter  end  of  the  week  I  may  hope  to  have  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  you.  I  can't  stay  more  than  two  days,  because 
Lord  Bury  stops  at  Windsor,  and  the  Major  goes  to  London — 
Six  Companies  of  the  regiment  are  to  quarter  in  the  Castle  of 
Dover,  where  I  shall  pass  the  winter,  the  rest  are  to  be  at  Maidstone. 

I  beg  my  duty  to  my  Father,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe. 
Blackheath. 

Wolfe's  professional  ideals  were  very  high ;  else  we  might 
marvel  a  little  sometimes  at  the  disesteem  in  which  he  appears  to 
hold  his  own  men.  From  other  sources  we  learn  that  "  Lord 
Bury's  Regiment  is  the  best  in  the  Army,  so  far  as  drill  and 
discipline  go."^ 

With  many  great  commanders  we  find  a  tendency  to  de- 
preciate the  rank  and  file  under  them,  notably  in  the  case  of  the 
Duke  of  Wellington,  who  spoke  of  them  as  "  dirty  rascals "'' 
and  "  the  scum  of  the  earth,"  yet  at  the  same  time  prepared  to 
defend  them  warmly  as  "the  finest  fighting  material  on  earth." 
A  man  may  even  speak  of  his  own  children  as  "brats"  and 
"  rogues,"  but  we  must  not  accept  him  too  literally.  Nor  must  we 
reprehend  our  hero  for  not  considering  every  man  in  his  regiment 
equal  to  himself  in  spirit,  intelligence  and  conduct. 

*  Lansdowne  MS. 


DOVER   CASTLE  225 

Failing  the  expected  review,  across  the  south  of  England 
marched  Wolfe  and  his  men.  We  have  a  picture  of  Wolfe  as  he 
departed  through  the  streets  of  Reading.  "  A  tall  thin  officer 
astride  a  bay  horse,  his  face  lit  up  by  a  smile  and  conversing 
pleasantly  with  the  officers  who  rode  by  his  side."  ^  On  through 
Guildford  and  Oxted  they  held  their  way  to  Maidstone,  where  a 
portion  of  the  regiment  was  left ;  but  the  greater  number  kept  on 
to  Dover  where  they  took  up  their  station  in  the  Ceistle,  on  that 
giddy  height  which  Shakespeare  has  celebrated  and  the  lovers  and 
enemies  of  Albion  have  from  time  immemorial  contemplated  with 
awe. 

But  a  portion  of  the  march  was  made  without  the  Lieutenant- 
Colonel,  "  such  slow  movements  not  being  agreeable  to  his  disposi- 
tion of  mind."  He  turned  at  an  early  stage  off  for  Blackheath  and 
was  able  to  spend  a  couple  of  days  there  at  the  family  mansion 
from  whence,  owing  to  the  fine  weather,  his  parents  had  not  yet 
flitted,  before  rejoining  his  men. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Dover  Castle,  19^ A  November,  1751}. 

Dear  Madam, — As  soon  as  ever  I  could  get  my  green  cloth 
spread  upon  the  barrack  table,  and  pen,  ink,  and  paper  out  of 
my  baggage,  I  sit  down  to  write  to  you  to  inform  you  that  the 
remainder  of  our  march  was  as  fortunate  in  point  of  weather  as  the 
former  part  had  been  ;  and  here  our  labour  ends,  I  can't  say  com- 
fortably or  warmly,  but  in  a  soldier-like  starving  condition.  The 
winds  rattle  pretty  loud,  and  the  air  is  sharp,  but  I  suppose 
healthy  for  it  causes  great  keenness  of  appetite.  I  lodge  at 
the  foot  of  a  tower  supposed  to  be  built  by  the  Romans,  and 
cannot  help  wishing  sometimes  that  they  had  chosen  a  snugger 
situation  to  erect  their  fortress  upon ;  or  that  the  modems,  who 
demolished  a  good  part  of  the  works  of  antiquity,  had  been  so 
kind  to  us,  their  military  posterity,  as  not  to  leave  one  stone 
upon  another. 

The  strength  of  our  fortification  is  removed  by  discord  and 
by  time ;  but  caissons  are  raised  upon  the  ruins  as  prisons,  and 
a  proper  mode  of  punishment  for  those  wild  imaginations  that 
prefer  the  empty  sound  of  drum  and  trumpet  to  sober  knock  of 
hammer  in  shop  mechanic.  Here's  a  ready  deliverance  down  the 
perpendicular  to  such  as  are  tired  of  their  existence.  They  need 
not  run  very  far  to  get  out  of  this  world ;  one  bold  step  frees 

^  Old  Berkshire  Memories^  1827. 


226    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

them  from  thought.  I'm  afraid  I  shall  lose  my  interest  at  Court 
by  this  distant  recluse  life,  and  shall  never  be  notticed  (as  the 
Scotch  say)  but  to  be  reprimanded  for  some  dispute  with  a 
cobbler  who  has  a  vote  in  such  a  dirty  borough  as  Dover. 
Sincerely,  I  beg  you'll  make  my  best  compliments  to  the  General 
and  desire  him  to  convince  the  King  and  Duke  that  he  is  not 
displeased  with  them,  for  otherwise  I  shall  be  involved  within 
the  resentment  that  must  follow  this  seeming  contempt  of  majesty 
and  dignity. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Dover  Castle  was  not  then  the  charming  place  it  is  now  esteemed 
by  tourists.  It  was  shamefully  dilapidated,  and  as  to  the  chapel  of 
St.  Mary's,  until  its  restoration  nearly  a  century  later  at  the  hands 
of  Sir  Gilbert  Scott,  "  roofless,  shattered  and  exposed  to  the 
damaging  effects  of  rain,  frost  and  mischief,  it  was  used  as  a  coal 
cellar  ;  while  the  Roman  pharos  at  the  west  end,  one  of  the  most 
interesting  landmarks  of  history  in  the  kingdom,  was  applied  to  a 
purpose  that  was  even  more  degrading  and  disreputable."  ^ 

To  anticipate  a  passage  in  one  of  Wolfe's  letters,  "  I  am  sure 
there  is  not  in  the  King's  dominions  a  more  melancholy  dreadful 
winter  station." 

To  HIS  Father. 

Dover,  December  6th,  1763. 
Dear  Sir, — The  best  and  most  agreeable  service  that  you  can 
do  me  (since  you  are  so  good  to  offer  your  service)  is  to  amuse 
and  divert  yourself  with  such  change  and  variety  as  the  neigh- 
bourhood of  London,  or  inconsiderable  distance  from  Bath,  or 
other  places  of  public  resort,  put  within  your  reach.  I  know  by 
myself  how  necessary  it  is  to  refresh  the  mind  with  new  objects 
to  prevent  its  sinking,  and  how  very  useful  a  fresh  collection  of 
thoughts  are  in  supporting  the  spirits.  Let  me  alone  six  or 
seven  days  in  my  room,  and  I  lose  all  sort  of  sensation,  either  of 
pain  or  pleasure,  and  am  in  species  little  better  than  an  oyster. 

Indeed,  soldiering,  as  Wolfe  was  forced  to  pursue  the  art,  was  a 
trying  business.  All  his  fire  and  force  and  talents  were  being 
crushed  out. 

1  The  Builder,  September  7,  1862, 


CHRISTMAS   GHOSTS  227 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Dover,  IQth  December,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — I  find  our  afternoons  hang  so  heavily  that 
expedients  are  wanted  to  divert  the  time.  Our  conversation 
from  dinner  till  five  o'*clock  is  kept  up  with  some  difficulty,  as 
none  of  us  have  any  correspondence  with  the  capital,  nor  com- 
munication with  coffee-houses  or  public  papers,  so  that  we  are 
entirely  in  the  dark  as  to  exterior  things.  From  five  till  eight 
is  a  tedious  interval  hardly  to  be  worked  through.  I  have 
inquired  for  good  green  tea  in  Dover,  as  an  aid,  and  can  find 
none ;  it  will  be  some  relief  and  an  act  of  charity  if  you  will 
send  me  a  pound  of  the  best.  I  put  off*  my  demand  imtil  I  knew 
your  rents  were  due,  although  I  should  rather  wish  you  could 
persuade  the  General  to  pay  for  it,  as  I  take  his  purse  to  be  in 
better  order  than  either  yours  or  mine.^ 

The  castle  is  haunted  with  the  spirits  of  some  of  our  restless 
forefathers,  the  old  Saxons,  and  some  of  their  wives,  for  here  are 
ghosts  of  both  sexes.  Whether  these  shadowy  beings  are  rest- 
less, or  our  consciences  weak  and  our  imaginations  strong,  you 
may  easily  conjecture.  But  here  are  people  that  believe  there  are 
spirits  to  be  seen,  and  others  that  are  ready  to  swear  to  the  sight ; 
or,  in  other  words,  there  are  minds  unable  to  bear  the  darkness  of 
the  night  without  trembling.  We  know  that  Christmas  is  at 
hand,  by  the  sutler's  mince-pies.  I  hope  you  have  all  the  gaiety 
and  good-fellowship  that  these  times  generally  produce,  to 
enliven  the  otherwise  cold  and  dreary  season. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

After  the  Christmas  "  festivities ''  Wolfe  wrote  another  letter 
home. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Dover  Castle,  28  Dec.,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — Although  I  knew  you  were  convinced  that 
I  had  written  to  you  from  Reading,  I  was  not  sorry  to  hear  you 
had  received  my  letter.  I  was  indebted  to  you  for  a  favour, 
and  meant  to  send  you  thanks.  Maidstone  would  have  been,  as 
you  say,  a  more  comfortable  quarter  than  this ;  for  it  is  not 
possible  to  be  in  one  that  is  less  so,  but  this  place  has  its  ad- 
vantages that  are  of  some  estimation  ;  we  have  no  magistrates  or 

1  The  price  of  green  tea  was  then  about  30*.  a  pound. 


228     LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

inhabitants  to  quarrel  with  :  the  soldiers  are  under  our  immediate 
inspection ;  and  we  can  prevent  them  in  any  evil  designs.  It 
would  be  a  prison  to  man  of  pleasure ;  but  an  officer  may  put 
up  with  it.  People  that  choose  to  read  have  a  great  deal  of  time ; 
the  rest  play  at  picquet.  In  wet  weather  we  are  confined  to  the 
castle,  but  when  it  is  fine  we  get  out  upon  the  Downs  between 
this  and  Deal,  which  is  a  very  pleasant  ride.  I  have  been  once 
shooting  in  hopes  of  killing  some  cocks  to  present  you  with ;  but 
there  are  few  or  no  springs  in  the  woods  of  this  country,  so  that 
those  birds  do  not  stay  long  after  they  land.  Capt.  Howe  who 
went  to  London  yesterday  offered  to  carry  one  and  leave  it  at 
Blackheath.  But  I  declined  his  civil  offer,  as  I  thought  it  not 
worth  your  acceptance.  I  should  be  sorry  to  lose  Lieut.  Bury  at 
this  particular  juncture :  not  at  all  upon  my  own  account,  but 
because  I  know  he  can  serve  the  officers,  is  inclined  to  do  so,  and 
has  just  now  a  very  favourable  opportunity  as  there  are  no  less 
than  six,  that  desire  or  should  be  desired  to  leave  the  regiment. 

I  hear  that  Mr.  Conolly  ^  has  relapsed  and  is  in  more  danger 
than  ever,  probably  gone  by  this  time.  Carlton  and  his  brother 
will  feel  that  loss  very  sensibly ;  he  is  not  only  their  patron  and 
protector,  but  has  a  fatherly  affection  and  kindness  for  them. 

I  am  interrupted,  and  so  must  send  you  my  best  wishes  for 
both  your  happiness,  and  finish  with  assuring  you  that  I  always 
am,  dear  Madam,  your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

1  The  Right  Hon.  William  Conolly,  M.P.,  of  Stratton  Hall,  Staffs.,  was 
nephew  and  heir  of  his  namesake,  the  Speaker  of  the  Irish  House  of  Commons. 
He  died  at  Castletown,  Celbridge,  January  3,  1754.  His  only  son,  Thomas, 
married  a  daughter  of  the  second  Duke  of  Richmond  (Lady  Louisa  Conolly), 
aunt  of  the  ill-starred  Lord  Edward  Fitzgerald  and  also  of  Generals  Sir 
Charles  and  William  Napier. 


XI 

EXETER   AND  THE   WEST 

Although  his  letters  are  filled  with  a  humorous  sort  ot  com- 
plaints, Dover  really  agreed  with  Wolfe  or  else  his  constitution  was 
greatly  improved  since  his  return  from  Scotland.  His  only  real 
grievance  seems  to  be  the  perennial  one  of  not  "  being  any  use  in 
the  world,''  in  other  words,  not  seeing  active  service.  But  a  soldier's 
life  is  not  entirely  made  up  of  battles,  and  Wolfe  was  apt  to 
appraise  at  much  less  than  its  real  value  the  efforts  he  made  to 
improve  his  regiment,  and  the  influence  his  example  furnished  to 
all  other  officers.  Having  more  leisure  and  more  congenial  sur- 
roundings, he  took  again  to  his  books  in  downright  earnest.  He 
was  not  able  to  inoculate  all  his  officers  with  his  own  zeal  in  this 
respect — that  it  would,  perhaps,  be  unreasonable  to  look  for — but 
they  did  spare  a  little  time  from  piquet  for  the  purpose,  wondering 
at  their  commander's  strange  infatuation.  Sometimes  Wolfe  took 
a  gallop  over  the  Downs,  or  enjoyed  an  afternoon's  shooting  in 
neighbouring  coverts.  But  his  whole  heart  was  in  his  work — and 
the  subalterns  had  daily  testimony  of  the  almost  paternal  relation 
in  which  this  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  seven-and-twenty  stood 
towards  them. 

It  seems  that  the  officers  of  the  new  garrison  at  the  Castle  were 
not  considered  as  sociable  as  their  predecessors,  and  Miss  Brett, 
who  was  staying  with  her  father.  Sir  Piercy  Brett,  at  Dover,  had  a 
doleful  tale  to  tell  of  the  ungallant  manner  in  which  the  Dover 
ladies  felt  they  were  being  treated  by  the  "  bookish  Colonel "  and 
his  friends.  To  his  mother's  rally ings  Wolfe  replied  on  New 
Year's  Eve — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Dover  Castle,  Dec.  31,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — It  will  be  neither  expensive  nor  troublesome 
to  send  what  you  desire,  but,  on  the  contrary,  cheap  and  pleasant. 
My  judgement  in  these  matters  is  very  fallible  ;  but  I'll  employ 
an  abler  hand  to  chase  that  samphire.  If  you  like  what  I  send, 
let  me  know,  and  you  shall  have  more. 

If  Nanny  Brett's  ladies  lived  as  loftily  and  as  much  in  the 

229 


230    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

clouds  as  we  do,  their  appetites  for  dancing  or  anything  else  would 
not  be  quite  so  keen.  If  we  dress  the  wind  disorders  our  curls  ;  if 
we  walk  we  are  in  danger  of  our  legs  ;  if  we  ride,  of  our  necks  ;  and 
how  can  the  tender  hearted  sex  expect  we  should  go  down  unto  'em 
at  such  risk  and  disadvantage  ?  But  there's  a  truth  which  my 
flame  must  not  know,  some  of  our  finest  performers  are  at  present 
disabled,  and  the  rest  disheartened  from  attempting  it  by  the 
terrible  example  of  the  suiFerers.  There  are  but  two  of  us  that  can 
be  reckoned  to  be  whole  and  entire  ;  both  very  tall  and  thin,  and 
we  cannot  undertake  to  please  all  these  ladies  alone,  the  task  is 
more  difficult  than  Mistress  Anne  seems  to  be  aware  of.  If  it  was 
not  for  fear  of  offending  you,  I  should  almost  confess  that  I  think 
we  are  grown  old,  whether  constitutionally  so,  or  philosophically 
resigned,  or  sequestered  from  the  world,  by  being  almost  always 
deprived  and  cut  off  from  the  common  enjoyments  of  it.  Habit 
by  degrees,  creating  tastes  agreeable  to  our  condition  and 
different  from  those  that  are  most  in  vogue ;  part  or  all  of  these 
joined  perhaps  together,  and  years  really  creeping  on ;  with 
notions  conformable,  cooling  the  blood  and  spring  of  action,  till 
dancing  and  all  its  light  train  of  amusement  appears  vain  and 
contemptible.  Notwithstanding  this  I  always  encourage  our 
young  people  to  frequent  balls  and  assemblies.  It  softens  their 
manners,  and  makes  'em  civil,  and  commonly  I  go  along  with 
'em  to  see  how  they  conduct  themselves.  I  am  only  afraid 
they  should  fall  in  love  and  marry.  Whenever  I  perceive  the 
symptoms,  or  anyone  else  makes  the  discovery,  we  fall  upon  the 
delinquent  without  mercy,  till  he  grows  out  of  conceit  with  his 
new  passion.  By  this  method  we  have  broke  through  many  an 
amorous  alliance  and  dissolved  many  ties  of  eternal  love  and 
affection.  My  experience  in  these  matters,  helps  me  to  find 
out  my  neighbour's  weakness  and  furnishes  me  with  arms  to 
oppose  his  folly.  I  am  not  however  always  so  successful  as 
could  be  wished ;  two  or  three  of  the  most  simple  and  insensible 
in  other  respects  have  triumphed  over  my  endeavours,  but  are 
seated  upon  the  stool  of  repentance  for  the  remainder  of  their 
days. 

Our  garrison  (to  confirm  Nanny's  intelligence)  is  not  composed 
of  the  liveliest  body  of  the  Regiment ;  the  three  remarkable  men 
Bourchier,  Billings,  (with  the  Belly)  and  Clements,  commonly 
called  Ben,  whom  I  formerly  described  to  you,  are  apart,  and 
they  don't  do  us  any  honour  with  the  ladies ;  we  have  three  or 
four  under  the  surgeon's  hands  for  misfortunes,  and  the  rest 


"OUR  GOOD  OLD   MONARCH"     231 

walk  down  the  hill  about  once  a  month ;  but  if  Miss  Gunman 
w£is  here,  we  that  are  able,  might  go  oftener. 

I  believe  my  cousin  Goldsmith  is  already  persuaded  that  we  are 
a  set  of  the  worst  correspondents  in  England.  I  have  been  six 
months  in  his  debt,  without  rhyme  or  reason ;  I  owe  him  a  thousand 
thanks  for  a  pointer,  that  is  my  happiness  and  my  very  existence 
here,  and  I'll  acquit  myself  towards  him  this  very  night,  and 
mention  your  commands.  He  is  the  most  reasonable  man  alive, 
his  requests  seldom  go  beyond  the  desire  that  he  has  to  know  that 
we  are  well,  he  never  asks  any  other  favour  than  to  be  satisfied 
in  this  particular.  I  am  a  pair  or  two  of  spectacles  behind  hand 
with  him,  and  I  long  to  send  him  that  little  promised  token  of 
my  esteem.  I  find  Mr.  ConoUy  is  in  a  lingering  way,  his  liver 
is  affected,  and  'tis  impossible  he  can  recover,  this  is  a  deadly 
blow  to  my  poor  friend  and  will  touch  him  deeply :  but  I  hope 
the  Duke  of  Richmond's  protection,  which  I  am  sure  he  will 
deserve,  may  make  him  some  amends. 

Your  present  is  arrived  and  is  extremely  valuable,  both  on 
account  of  the  person  presenting  it,  and  its  goodness,  and  you 
have  my  best  thanks.  We  are  not  lucky  in  lotteries,  but  we 
have  other  pieces  of  good  fortune  that  makes  us  ample  amends. 
A  clear  and  fair  conscience  and  a  reputation  instained  by  vice  or 
dishonour  is  fallen  to  both  your  lots,  and  that  you  may  put  in 
the  balance  against  any  other  chance,  and  it  will  far  outweigh 
them.  I  beg  my  compliments  to  Mrs.  Egerton.  Tomorrow  the 
new  year  begins,  I  salute  you  upon  it  and  wish  you  both  all 
pleasure  and  peace  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Fathee. 

Dover  Castle^  Qth  January,  1754. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  very  glad  to  find  you  in  a  resolution  con- 
formable to  the  rest  of  your  character.  If  you  have  ever  omitted 
the  performance  of  that  duty  which  is  due  from  an  officer  of 
your  rank,  and  from  a  man  of  your  attachment  and  way  of 
thinking  to  the  King,  it  has  proceeded  from  reasons  rather 
commendable  and  praiseworthy  than  blameable.  You  knew  he 
was  environed  with  a  himgry,  greedy  set.  As  you  had  no  favour 
to  ask  or  expect  beyond  a  good  reputation,  you  would  not  seem 
(however  free  from  the  thought)  to  augment  the  number  of 
petitioners  that  surround  the  throne.     But  his  Majesty  will  now 


232    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

be  convinced  that  no  motive  of  interest  direct  you  to  him  ;  he  may 
easily  distinguish  you  from  the  rest,  because  I  am  fully  persuaded 
that  you  are  the  only  one,  however  fair  soever  your  title  and 
pretensions  may  be,  that  has  not  asked  something.  Such  persons 
are  so  rare  in  courts  that  kings  may  look  upon  them  as  miracles ; 
and  our  good  old  monarch  would  find  out  and  reward  the 
modesty  of  some  of  his  subjects  if  the  impudence  of  others  did 
not  prevent  it.  I  am  highly  pleased  that  your  going  to  St. 
James's  was  graciously  received,  and  that  you  yourself  were 
satisfied. 

I  have  sent  you  some  birds  of  my  own  killing ;  few  indeed 
they  are  in  number  and  small  in  kind,  but  quails  are  a  rarity  at 
this  season.  I  had  a  pheasant  and  some  partridges,  but  these  I 
durst  not  send,  as  we  are  not  authorised  by  law  to  kill  them ; 
and  as  they  examine  strictly  upon  the  great  roads  I  should  be 
unwilling  to  be  reputed  a  smuggler.  It  is  a  misfortune  for  a 
man  that  likes  this  sort  of  sport  preferable  to  any  other  to  be 
liable  to  law  and  fine,  or  to  be  obstructed  in  the  pursuit  of  a 
very  innocent  and  wholesome  diversion.  Over  the  water  "'tis 
death  to  shoot  without  license ;  here  'tis  prosecution,  damages, 
and  costs.  I  suppose  you  have  heard  that  the  French  have  been 
working  at  Dunkirk  a  kind  of  reservoir  which,  with  a  communica- 
tion with  the  neighbouring  canals,  will  be  a  backwater  sufficient 
to  cleanse  their  harbour.  Sir  Piercy  Brett  and  an  engineer  have 
been  there  to  examine  these  late  dangerous  operations.  Their 
report  is  not  yet  made  public,  or,  at  least,  it  has  not  reached  the 
top  of  our  hill.  But  I  think  our  neighbour's  meaning  is  pretty 
plain,  and  I  hope  we  shaVt  misunderstand  him. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Admiral  Sir  Piercy  Brett  was  one  of  Anson's  officers  in  his 
celebrated  voyage  round  the  world.  He  was  knighted  in  1753  and 
was  afterwards  one  of  the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Dover  Castle,  2  Feb.,  1754. 

Dear  Madam, — ^This  providential  hard  frost  interposes 
between  us  and  an  ugly  malignant  disorder  that  has  broken  out 
in  our  neighbourhood.  An  infection  in  the  air  is  best  overcome 
by  cold ;  and  indeed  there  is  no  other  remedy.  We  did  believe 
for  a  time  that  our  companies  would  be  cantonned  along  the 


A   COURT-MARTIAL  233 

coast  of  Kent,  to  keep  suspected  vessels  from  approaching  the 
shore.  Such  a  disposition  of  the  troops  would  be  reasonable  and 
safe  in  any  other  country  but  this  :  here  it  must  be  ineffectual : 
the  villainy  of  the  smugglers  would  overcome  all  precautions. 
We  have  (besides  the  apprehension  of  the  plague)  sometimes 
thought  ourselves  in  the  way  of  this  East  India  expedition ;  and 
if  they  had  sent  a  regiment  from  England,  it  could  have  been 
none  other,  but  Lord  Bury's  rank  and  employment  exempts  him 
from  these  undertakings,  and  I  do  suppose  he  would  not  think 
it  consistent  to  let  his  regiment  embark  without  him ;  so  we  are 
reserved  for  more  brilliant  service. 

By  a  letter  that  I  have  received  lately  from  London  I  am 
informed  that  we  are  to  move  from  this  place  sooner  than  was 
expected ;  and  that  we  shall  begin  to  change  our  quarters  early 
in  the  month  of  March.  Five  companies  are  to  go  to  Bristol 
and  five  to  Exeter.  If  we  are  reviewed,  as  I  hope  we  shall  be, 
before  we  get  into  the  west,  I  may  be  able  to  be  sooner  with  you 
than  I  could  propose ;  and  consequently  shall  enjoy  that  satis- 
faction, beyond  my  expectations  and  in  the  finest  season.  I  hear 
that  my  cousin,  Whetham,  ha^  met  with  a  very  ugly  accident  and 
is  in  danger  of  losing  an  eye.  The  rage  of  fox-hunting  that 
seems  to  possess  all  the  descendants  of  the  old  master,  has  been 
fatal  to  that  poor  lad ;  though  I  hope  it  is  not  so  bad  as  has 
been  represented. 

I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father.  I  wish  you  both  much  health, 
and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

There  was  great  indecision  at  head-quarters  regarding  the  further 
disposition  of  Wolfe's  regiment  in  the  new  year.  As  every  motion 
made  by  France  was  looked  upon  with  suspicion,  there  was  at  first 
a  scheme  for  cantoning  the  men  along  the  coasts  of  Kent  to  prevent 
suspicious  vessels  from  approaching  land,  and  he  received  orders 
from  the  Horse  Guards  to  this  effect.  Wolfe  thought  little  of  this 
arrangement,  which  he  declared  would  prove  ineffectual,  "as  the 
villainy  of  the  smugglers  would  overcome  all  precautions,"  and  was 
neither  surprised  nor  sorry  when  the  order  was  countermanded, 
owing  to  "  the  hard  frost."  During  February  there  was  a  case  of  a 
deserter,  and  for  the  first  time  Wolfe  had  to  preside  at  a  court- 
martial.  It  appears  that  recruits  for  the  French  service  were 
shipped  at  Dover,  and  which  also  gave  an  opportunity  to  deserters. 


234     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

In  a  regimental  order  Wolfe  desires  certain  men  who  had  been,  or 
wish  to  be,  in  the  French  service,  to  know  that  he  sets  no  value 
upon  them.  He  had  "  much  rather  they  were  in  the  Irish  brigade 
than  in  the  Army  of  Great  Britain  ;  but  if  any  of  them,  hereafter, 
should  threaten  to  desert,  he  shall  be  immediately  whipped  out  of 
the  regiment  as  a  fit  recruit  for  the  rebel  battalions  hired  by  the 
French  to  serve  against  their  country."" 

To  HIS  Father. 

Dover  Castle,  13  Feb.,  1764. 

Dear  Sir, — It  has  been  so  intolerably  cold  for  these  last 
three  weeks  that  I  have  been  hardly  able  to  hold  a  pen  or  to  do 
any  kind  of  business ;  and  I  am  afraid  you  have  not  been  less 
sensible  of  its  severity.  This  welcome  thaw  will  restore  people 
to  the  use  of  their  limbs,  and  introduce  another  and  more  grateful 
season.  One  of  the  captains  of  our  regiment,  whose  whole 
happiness  is  made  up  of  hunting,  came  from  his  quarters  at 
Maidstone  with  his  pack  of  fleet  harriers,  to  hunt  in  this 
neighbourhood ;  because  the  country  here  is  better  than  about 
Maidstone.  He  arrived  a  day  or  two  before  the  frost  and  must 
depart  forthwith ;  so  that  the  unfortunate  man,  and  the  whole 
garrison  indeed,  have  been  disappointed  of  their  favourite  and 
much  desired  diversion.  Thus  by  the  breath  of  a  north  east 
wind  are  the  finest  prospects  of  sport  and  pleasure  made  to 
vanish  like  smoke  and  pass  away  like  a  dream.  Pleasures  that 
are  enjoyed,  leave  but  a  slight  impression :  they  furnish  matter 
for  idle  talk.  But  the  cooler  reflection  upon  them  serves  but  to 
convince  a  thinking  person,  that  we  are  occupied  about  small 
matters  and  earnest  upon  trifles.  This  consideration  ought  to 
make  this  sort  of  disappointments  sit  easy ;  since  all  that  we  can 
have  of  what  is  past,  is  but  a  faint  idea. 

I  have  been  appointed  to  preside  at  a  general  court  martial, 
composed  of  officers  of  our  regiment  for  the  trial  of  a  deserter. 
This  is  the  first  time  that  I  have  acted  in  that  grave  office,  and 
a  very  grave  one  it  is,  when  the  matter  under  consideration  is  of 
any  importance.  These  courts  of  justice  should  not  be  assembled 
too  frequently ;  lest  the  troops  should  forget  or  lose  the  respect 
and  veneration  that  they  ought  to  have  for  such  courts.  I  hope 
the  weather  will  invite  you  soon  to  take  the  air.  The  more 
you  breathe  the  freshness  of  the  morning  air  in  the  spring,  the 
better  for  your  health ;  and  the  more  you  stir  about  and  vary 
your  conversation,  the  more  cheerful  you  must  necessarily  be. 


ARMY  MARRIAGES  235 

I  hope  to  hear  that  some  business  calls  you  often  to  London ; 
or  that  your  affection  for  the  King''s  person  draws  you  sometimes 
into  his  presence.  I  am  sure  you  ought  to  be,  and  consequently 
will  be  a  more  acceptable  courtier  than  many  that  go  there, 
merely  to  ask  favours. 

I  wish  you  and  my  mother  much  health.     I  beg  my  duty  to 
her,  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


To  HIS  Mother. 

Dover  Castle,  6  March,  1764. 
Dear  Madam, — The  spring  that  brings  new  life  and  spirits 
to  all  things  else,  will,  I  hope,  have  some  good  effects  upon 
you ;  but  you  must  not  expect  its  assistance,  unless  you  strive 
to  procure  it.  You  have  your  garden  and  your  park  to  walk 
in,  and  your  heath  for  riding ;  these  are  not  to  be  neglected : 
and  if  my  father  or  you  should  be  advised,  (as  formerly  you 
were  by  very  wholesome  counsel)  to  change  your  situation  or 
your  air  for  a  time,  such  advice  is  not  to  be  slighted  whatever 
seeming  inconveniences  may  oppose  it. 

The  leave  of  absence  that  I  have  asked  (and  as  it  seems  not 
very  unreasonable,  perhaps  it  may  be  granted)  is  from  review 
till  August.  I  go  to  the  regiment  and  stay  during  the  months 
of  September,  October,  November  and  longer,  if  ifs  insisted  upon. 
Then  I  come  up  for  two  months  before  embarkation,  to  appoint 
factors,  agents,  etc.  upon  all  my  estates  and  settle  other  weighty 
concerns;  that  my  affairs  may  not  run  into  confusion  in  my 
absence.  This  I  hope  you  will  think  is  a  necessary  precaution  for 
all  that  are  possessed  of  any  considerable  property  of  lands,  houses, 
manors  etc !  !  Jack  Streton's  marriage  will  be  no  great  obstruc- 
tion to  his  fortune,  nor  so  inconvenient  as  to  your  moving  foot 
officer.  In  the  train,  they  have  good  fixed  establishments,  and 
their  prospect  of  preferment  is  entirely  within  their  own  corps. 
In  other  respects  I  hope  neither  Mrs.  Streton  nor  any  good 
mother  who  values  the  health  and  advantage  of  her  children, 
would  oppose  the  salutary  state  of  marriage,  nor  encourage  their 
offspring  to  tread  in  the  paths  of  sin  and  wickedness.  A  great 
deal  more  might  be  said  upon  this  subject  to  prove  the  necessity 
of  matrimony ;  but,  as  the  men  are  getting  under  arms  I  must 
put  off*  the  rest  till  another  time. 


236     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

My  duty  to  my  father,  I  wish  you  both  all  happiness,  and 
am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam:  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
JBlackheath,  Kent. 

At  last  Whitehall  made  up  its  official  mind  as  to  the  corps, 
and  in  March  the  regiment,  or  the  six  companies  of  it  which  had 
spent  the  winter  at  Dover  Castle,  descended  the  slopes  and  took 
the  road  for  Sittingbourne,  from  which  pleasant  old-fashioned  town 
Wolfe  writes  to  his  mother. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Sittingbourne,  2Uh  March,  1754. 

Dear  Madam, — Although  this  is  not  the  most  agreeable 
weather  to  march  in,  yet  we  are  glad  to  get  out  of  our  old 
castle  upon  any  terms.  It  was  to  no  purpose  to  complain  of 
our  condition  or  quarters,  nor  becoming  the  character  of  a 
soldier  to  do  it ;  but  since  the  bad  part  is  over,  and  we  have 
borne  it  with  patience,  a  man  may  be  allowed  to  rejoice  at 
the  escape.  I  am  sure  there  is  not  in  the  King's  dominions 
a  more  melancholy  dreadful  winter  station  than  that  we  have 
just  left ;  and  the  neglect  of  the  Board  of  Ordnance  adds  con- 
siderably to  the  natural  horror  that  the  situation  and  buildings 
raise  in  men's  minds,  and  even  makes  it  dangerous  to  reside  in  it 
in  cold  weather.     So  much  for  the  vile  dungeon ! 

Our  orders  of  march  have  been  changed  two  or  three  several 
times,  but  at  last  it  is  resolved  that  we  shall  bend  directly 
towards  Guildford,  where  five  of  our  companies  are  to  assemble 
to  be  reviewed  by  Lord  Bury ;  the  rest  are  to  proceed  to  Bristol 
with  expedition,  being  strongly  solicited  thereto  by  the  magis- 
trates of  that  place,  who,  I  suppose,  are  in  some  dread  of  the 
colliers  and  other  riotous  persons  in  their  neighbourhood.  I 
told  my  father  the  reason  why  I  could  not  hope  to  have  the 
pleasure  of  seeing  you  before  I  am  dismissed  by  authority ;  but 
it  may  happen  that  the  cross  road  from  Dartford  to  Croydon 
is  so  bad  that  we  shall  be  obliged  to  march  over  the  Heath  and 
by  Lewisham,  in  which  case  111  do  myself  the  honour  (in  the 
polite  phrase)  of  waiting  upon  you  for  an  hour,  and  I  wish  I  may 
find  you  triumphing  over  the  inclemency  of  the  season. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe, 


MISS  LAWSON'S   UNCLE  237 

As -Wolfe  anticipated,  the  road  from  Dartford  by  which  the 
authorities  usually  led  the  troops  in  order  to  circumvent  the 
metropolis  was  quite  impassable  by  the  spring  floods — in  fact, 
before  Macadam's  time,  the  roads  in  this  part  of  England  were 
especially  infamous — and  so  Wolfe  did  himself  the  honour  "  in 
the  polite  phrase"  of  waiting  upon  his  parents  in  Montagu 
Walk,  Blackheath.  One  may  be  sure,  that  brief  as  his  visit  was, 
he  did  not  neglect  to  visit  the  kennels  and  find  out  the  exact  state 
of  health  and  spirits  of  each  of  his  six  dogs,  whose  joy  at  welcoming 
their  master  must  have  been  testified  to  all  the  surrounding 
neighbourhood.  But  a  more  satisfactory  sojourn  at  home  was 
close  at  hand.  Lord  Bury  duly  came  down  and  reviewed  his 
regiment  at  Guildford,  and  the  ceremony  over  Wolfe  got  a  fairly 
long  leave  of  absence.  He  returned  straightway  to  Blackheath, 
where  he  passed  two  or  three  months  at  the  very  finest  season 
of  the  year,  when  garden  and  the  adjoining  park  were  at  their 
best,  and  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  could  scamper  over  the  turf 
with  all  his  dogs  to  his  heart's  content  or  mount  his  favourite 
horse,  gallop  over  to  visit  his  friends  at  Squerryes  Court,  fifteen 
miles  away,  over  steep  Westerham  Hill. 

Early  in  July  he  received  an  invitation  to  visit  Freefolk,  near 
Whitchurch  in  Hampshire,  from  his  old  friend.  Sir  John  Mordaunt, 
uncle  of  his  inamorata.  Miss  Lawson.  There  is  something  in  this 
young  lady's  rejection  of  the  Lieutenant- Colonel's  suit  that  leads 
one  to  believe  it  was  inspired  from  outside,  probably  by  Wolfe's 
own  parents.  It  is  not  as  if  she  had  bestowed  her  heart  elsewhere. 
Although  boasting  many  suitors  the  late  Maid  of  Honour  to  the 
mother  of  George  III  remained  unmarried,  for  the  rest  of  her  short 
life.  Her  death  happened  only  six  months  before  Wolfe's  own. 
News  of  the  young  General  Wolfe's  engagement  to  Miss  Lowther 
leaked  out  in  Bath  before  he  sailed  on  his  last  expedition  in 
February  1759.  In  the  month  following,  while  he  was  still  at 
sea,  she  to  whom  he  had  so  long  and  with  s  uch  ardour  paid  court 
breathed  her  last.^ 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Freefolk,  July  Uth,  1764. 

Dear  Madam, — Sir  J.  Mordaunt's  civility,  good-breeding, 
and  good-humour  make  his  house  easy  and  pleasant  to  his 
guests,  and  the  country  round  about  has  a  variety  of  charms, 
especially  to  those  that  love  sport.     As  far  as  my  disposition 

^  Gentleman's  Magazine,  Obituary. 


238    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

will  permit,  I  live  everywhere  as  they  live  with  whom  I  am,  and 
put  off  the  fixing  upon  a  way  of  life,  or  preferring  one  method 
to  another  till  I  can  do  it  at  home, — in  all  simplicity  following 
nature  without  control.  My  mistress"'s  picture  hangs  up  in  the 
room  where  we  dine.  It  took  away  my  stomach  for  two  or  three 
days,  and  made  me  grave ;  but  time,  the  never  failing  aid  to 
distressed  lovers,  has  made  the  semblance  of  her  a  pleasing,  but 
not  a  dangerous  object.  However,  I  find  it  best  not  to  trust 
myself  to  the  lady's  eyes,  or  put  confidence  in  any  resolutions  of 
my  own. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
Our  hero  was  but  an  indifferent  patron  of  the  turf. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Freefolk,  July  2\8t,  1754. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  rambled  over  several  places  in  this  neigh- 
bourhood. The  Duke  of  Bolton's  park  and  gardens  at  Hackwood 
are  well  worth  a  journey  to  see  them.  I  was  there  and  at 
Basingstoke  races  the  same  day.  If  I  had  understood  matters 
of  that  sort,  or  had  been  a  more  refined  politician  and  better 
corn-tier  than  I  really  am,  I  should  have  carried  my  pockets  off 
full  of  money,  for  there  were  great  odds  offered  against  the 
Duke's  horse,  and  some  of  the  country  gentlemen  seemed  to 
propose  wagers  with  more  passion  than  judgment.  The  Duke 
was  not  present.  Boscawen  managed  his  interest  upon  the 
course,  and  except  him  there  was  not  a  soul  that  I  had  the  least 
acquaintance  with. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  Boscawen  mentioned  in  the  foregoing  was  the  Hon.  John 
Boscawen,  fifth  son  of  the  Earl  of  Falmouth  and  brother  of  the 
Admiral,  who  was  destined  to  command  the  naval  expedition  to 
Louisburg  in  1758. 

A  week  later  Wolfe  returned  to  Blackheath,  between  which  place 
and  Westerham  he  divided  his  time  until  the  latter  end  of  September. 
His  leave  then  coming  to  an  end  he  travelled  across  England  to 
Bath  and  from  thence  to  Bristol,  where  his  regiment  was.  Mrs. 
Wolfe  was  preparing  for  her  own  journey  to  Bath,  at  which 
resort  she  and  the  General  spent  several  weeks  every  year.  The 
Mrs.  Thornhill  of  the  following  letter  was  the  wife  of  Wolfe's 


ARRIVES   IN  EXETER  239 

neighbour  at  Blackheath,  nephew  of  the  eminent  painter,  Sir  James 
Thornhill.  One  gets  an  idea  of  the  multifarious  duties  of  an 
army  agent  in  those  days  when  one  of  them  is  required  to  engage 
lodgings  for  the  wife  or  mother  of  a  client  in  her  travels. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Bristol,  Sunday,  29  Sept.,  1754. 

Dear  Madam, — My  journey  agreed  so  well  with  me  the  first 
day  that  I  found  myself  in  condition  to  put  an  end  to  it  sooner 
than  I  could  expect ;  and  I  came  here  early  the  second  day. 
John  and  my  equipage  arrived  the  third,  not  quite  so  happily 
as  one  could  wish  ;  for  one  of  the  horses  (my  own  incomparable 
steed)  fell  and  has  cut  his  knees  severely,  and  the  other  has 
a  swelled  leg.  This  and  the  excellent  quality  of  the  waters 
here  for  washing  away  all  dregs  and  obstructions,  will  keep 
me  till  this  day  or  to-morrow  se''nnight.  I  found  my  new 
adjutant  waiting  to  go  with  me  but  his  cloak  is  at  sea,  will 
leave  directions  concerning  it,  and  it  may  probably  meet  you 
at  Bath. 

The  company  has  nearly  all  left  the  Wells.  The  few  that  are 
still  there  are  kept  by  the  fine  weather.  Sir  Charles  Howard 
is  of  the  number  ;  he  has  found  more  benefit  this  year  than 
formerly,  even  to  be  able  to  get  on  horseback,  and  walk  upon 
the  Downs. 

I  am  going  to  see  Mrs.  Thornhill,  who  is  very  well,  and 
would  probably  fill  my  letter  with  compliments  if  she  knew  I 
was  writing. 

I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Mrs.  Fisher  has  promised  to  provide  good  lodgings  for  you 
at  Reading. 

Early  in  October  Wolfe  arrived  in  Exeter,  where  he  took  up 
his  winter-quarters  in  a  building  within  the  walls  of  Rougemont 
Castle.  Exeter  was  then  a  stronghold  of  Jacobitism,  as  staunch  as 
when,  a  century  before,  Fairfax  and  his  Roundheads  had  demolished 
the  old  Castle,  after  a  stout  resistance  by  the  Cavaliers. 

One  of  the  first  incidents  following  the  arrival  of  the  20th 
Regiment  at  Exeter  was  the  drafting  of  a  hundred  men  to  another 
regiment,  Dunbar's,  ordered  to  sail  for  America  to  take  part  in 
the  ill-fated  General  Braddock"*s  expedition. 


240    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  HIS  Father. 

Exeter,  26th  October,  1754. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  just  received  a  letter  from  Lord  Bury, 
concluding  with  this  short  paragraph  :  "  I  am  just  returned 
from  the  review  of  your  father"'s  regiment ;  they  did  well,  and  the 
Duke  was  very  well  pleased  with  him."  Lord  Bury  never  carries 
his  complaisance  to  his  inferiors  further  than  the  truth.  I  wish 
people  would  stick  to  that  above  as  well  as  below, — to  be  honest, 
if  possible,  at  both  ends  ;  but  that's  foreign  to  the  present 
purpose.  I  am  extremely  pleased  that  this  business  has  passed 
over  so  much  to  the  Duke's  satisfaction  and  to  yours.  It  is  a 
pity  you  were  not  better  acquainted ;  for  His  Royal  Highness 
only  begins  to  know  you, — he  has  but  just  found  out  that 
nobody  means  better  than  General  Wolfe. 

I  begin  to  flatter  myself  that  we  shall  soften  the  rigorous 
proceedings  of  our  adversaries  here,  and  live  with  them  on  better 
terms  than  hitherto.  It  is  not  our  interest  to  quarrel  with 
any  but  the  French  ;  and  they  must  be  devilish  minds  that  take 
a  pleasure  in  disputing.  I  hope  my  good  mother  will  tell  me 
whafs  doing  at  Bath,  and  I  hope  I  shall  hear  from  her  that  she 
is  sensible  of  the  good  effect  of  its  waters  and  of  its  cheerful 
variety  and  company.  Tim.  Brett  passed  through  here  some 
days  ago,  in  his  way  home ;  he  had  company  with  him,  and 
could  not  even  dine  with  me. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Exeter  was  not  an  easy  place  for  a  "  Hanoverian  "  officer  and  a 
veteran  of  CuUoden  to  live  in  just  then — hardly  much  more  con- 
genial than  some  parts  of  Scotland  had  been  during  Wolfe's  northern 
sojourn.  But  fortunately  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  was  the  right  man 
for  a  difficult  post.  At  that  time  the  Mayor  of  Exeter  was  a  pro- 
nounced Tory  named  Arthur.  A  sense  of  his  position  made  him 
reasonable,  and  very  soon  under  the  Colonel's  suasion  he  began  to 
relax  sufficiently  in  his  ultra- Jacobitism  as  to  yield  a  hearty  outward 
loyalty  to  the  reigning  powers  and  to  set  an  example  to  his  friends 
and  colleagues.  Wolfe  also  struck  up  a  friendship  with  Bishop 
Lavington,  who  found  the  young  officer  "  singularly  engaging." 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Exeter,  31*^  October,  1754. 

Dear  Madam, — I  do  not  like  the  account  of  your  health,  but 


HIS   MARTIAL   TASTES  241 

am  not  much  surprised  that  you  should  catch  cold  upon  the  road. 
A  person  that  has  lain  long  in  the  same  room,  and  in  the  same 
bed,  must  be  subject  to  this  inconvenience  by  change.  By  this 
time  I  hope  that  you  have  got  over  it,  and  are  able  to  drink  as 
much  of  the  water  and  enjoy  as  much  of  the  company  as  you  find 
is  for  your  advantage  and  entertainment.  These  public  places 
are  disagreeable  at  first  till  one  falls  in  with  a  party  to  one''s 
taste,  but  they  generally  furnish  so  much  variety  that  we  are  not 
long  at  a  loss  to  find  fit  companions. 

My  father  said  very  little  upon  the  subject  of  his  review,  just 
as  much  as  helped  me  to  conjecture  that  he  was  not  ill  pleased, 
but  he  did  not  mention  a  syllable  of  the  Duke's  civility  to  him 
which  I  was  very  glad  to  learn  from  you,  and  I  was  much 
rejoiced  to  perceive  that  you  had  been  present  at  the  military 
show,  and  had  been  diverted  with  it.  If  I  did  not  profess  the 
business  myself,  I  should  follow  all  the  reviewing  generals  for  the 
sake  of  seeing  the  troops.  I  know  nothing  more  entertaining 
than  a  collection  of  well-looking  men,  uniformly  clad  and 
performing  their  exercise  with  grace  and  order.  I  should  go 
further,  my  curiosity  would  carry  me  to  all  parts  of  the  world,  to 
be  a  spectator  at  these  martial  sights,  and  to  see  the  various 
produce  of  diff*erent  climates,  and  the  regulations  of  different 
armies.  Fleets  and  fortifications  too  are  objects  that  would 
attract  me  as  strongly  as  architecture,  painting  and  the  gentler  arts. 

You  did  not  tell  me  if  Mrs.  Lafausille  was  with  you  at  Reading. 
By  the  company  you  had  at  cards,  I  conclude  that  Donnellan's 
offences  are  forgiven.  I  dropt  my  correspondence  with  him 
upon  that  score,  and  shall  probably  never  revive  it ;  although  I 
know  him  to  be  a  whimsical  little  man  of  sense  and  generosity 
and  honour.  Have  you  seen  any  of  our  people  at  Bath  ?  They 
go  over  now  and  then  from  Bristol  for  a  day  to  dance,  and  then 
return  ;  the  poor  devils  can't  stay  long,  they  can't  bear  the  expense. 
We  have  one  very  extraordinary  person  gone  lately  from  hence, 
a  lieutenant  that  you  have  heard  me  speak  of,  his  name  is  Hennis, 
we  call  him  Bardolph.  If  his  figure  does  not  frighten  you,  it  will 
certainly  make  you  laugh  ;  he  will  be  at  some  gaming  table. 

That  poor  infatuated  old  fool.  Will,  deserves  compassion. 
He  may  now  be  considered  as  the  most  helpless,  abandoned 
wretch  upon  the  earth;  blind  folly  to  prefer  the  momentary 
satisfaction  that  ale  can  give  to  the  solid  certainty  of  care  and 
usage  in  your  easy  service ;  these  creatures  are  insensible  of 
present  advantages  or  prospect  of  future  misery. 


242    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Will  you  believe  that  no  Devonshire  squire  dances  more  than 
I  do  ?  What  no  consideration  of  pleasure  or  complaisance  for 
the  sex  could  effect,  the  love  of  peace  and  harmony  has  brought 
about.  I  have  danced  the  officers  into  the  good  graces  of  the 
Jacobite  women  here  abouts,  who  were  prejudiced  against  them. 
It  falls  hard  upon  me,  because  of  my  indolence  and  indifference 
about  it.  We  were  upon  such  terms  with  the  people  in  general 
that  I  have  been  forced  to  put  on  all  my  address,  and  employ  my 
best  skill  to  conciliate  matters.  It  begins  to  work  a  little 
favourably  but  not  certainly,  because  the  perverseness  of  these 
folks,  built  upon  their  disaffection,  makes  the  task  very  difficult. 

We  had  a  little  ball  last  night  to  celebrate  his  Majesty's 
birthday,  purely  military,  that  is,  the  men  were  all  officers, 
except  one.  The  female  branches  of  the  Tory  families  came 
readily  enough,  but  not  one  man  would  accept  the  invitation ; 
because  it  was  the  King's  birthday.  If  it  had  not  fallen  in  my 
way  to  see  such  an  instance  of  folly,  I  should  not  readily  be 
brought  to  conceive  it. 

"  I  remember,'""  wrote  a  lady  a  generation  later,  "  the  great 
General  Wolfe  to  have  been  much  admired  for  his  talent  in  this 
science  likewise  ;  but  he  was  generally  ambitious  to  gain  a  tall, 
graceful  woman  to  be  his  partner,  as  well  as  a  good  dancer ;  and 
when  he  was  honoured  with  the  hand  of  such  a  lady,  the  fierceness  of 
the  soldier  was  absorbed  in  the  politeness  of  the  gentleman.  When 
thus  innocently  animated,  the  General  seemed  emulous  to  display 
every  kind  of  virtue  and  gallantry  that  would  render  him  amiable 
in  a  private  character.  Such  a  serene  joy  was  diffused  over  his 
whole  manners,  mien,  and  deportment,  that  it  gave  the  most 
agreeable  turn  to  the  features  of  that  hero,  who  died  for  his 
country."  ^ 

To  HIS  Father. 

Exeter,  6  Nov.,  1754. 

Dear  Sir, — Sir  John  Mordaunt  hit  upon  a  point  in  his 
journey  to  Plymouth  that  seems  to  carry  reason  and  prudence 
with  it.  It  occurred  to  him,  that,  as  Lord  Bury  would  probably 
get  the  first  regiment  of  Dragoons  that  fell,  and  as  another 
colonel  of  rank  or  quality  or  Parliamentary  merit  would  probably 
succeed  him.  Sir  John  thought,  that  it  would  be  best  to  wait 
that  event,  to  propose  the  other  change.     He  thinks  it  so  difficult 

^  Miscellanies  in  Prose  and  Verse,  by  Mrs.  M.  Deverell,  Gloucester,  1781, 
vol.  i.  p.  74. 


LADY  GREY  OF  HOWICK  243 

to  accomplish  that  he  is  willing  to  have  some  circumstance  of 
that  sort  in  aid  of  the  request ;  for  although  I  cannot  expect  or 
hope  to  succeed  Lord  Bury,  yet  it  is  a  kind  of  grievance  to  put 
men  over  the  heads  of  those  who  have  been  perhaps  more  accus- 
tomed to  command,  and  have  had  all  the  business  to  do  for 
several  years.  This  is  a  plea,  that  would  be  of  very  little  service 
in  any  other  case,  but  may  do  good  in  this.  Most  of  my  brother 
Lieut. -Colonels  are  people  who  have  arrived  at  the  height  of 
their  expectations,  or,  at  least  will  be  contented  to  wait  till  their 
turn  comes,  without  murmuring.  Sir  John  offered  to  begin 
immediately ;  but  he  advised  this  delay  as  the  most  convenient ; 
and  you  may  be  sure  I  did  not  oppose  it. 

I  shall  answer  my  mother''s  letter  in  a  few  days.  I  am  glad 
to  hear  that  you  are  both  able  to  go  abroad,  and  to  taste  the 
amusements  of  the  place  ;  and  wish  your  health  may  still  enable 
you  to  do  so.  I  cannot  say  I  like  my  quarters  :  the  inhabitants 
are  of  all  ill  species.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother  and  am,  dear 
Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

To  Lieut.-Gen.  Wolfe, 
at  Bath,  Somerset. 

He  has  another  amusing  reference  to  old  Lady  Grey,  whose 
son  was  joining  the  army. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Exeter,  16^^  November,  1764. 

Dear  Madam, — Lady  Grey  knows  so  well  how  to  value  a 
constant  temper,  that  she  must  necessarily  encourage  such  a 
lover,  and  keeps  his  hopes  alive.  For  my  part,  I  don't  feel  the 
least  disposition  to  change  ;  but  if  ever  I  do,  it  shall  be  upon  the 
plan  prescribed  by  her.  I  will  look  where  she  points,  but  I 
must  warn  her  that  there  are  little  wandering  stars  of  very  bright 
aspect  at  first,  whose  beauty  and  light  are  soon  obscured,  and 
will  hardly  bear  a  close  inspection  ;  there  are  others  of  a  nobler 
nature — fixed  and  permanent — upon  whose  friendly  aid  and 
guidance  a  traveller  may  depend.  Now,  to  distinguish  between 
these  heavenly  bodies  requires  a  pretty  good  telescope  and  strong 
sight.  But,  to  descend  a  little  from  things  celestial  to  things 
that  are  material,  I  must  acknowledge  her  ladyship's  great 
goodness  in  offering  such  security  to  the  General  as  she  is 
possessed  of. 
R  2 


244    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

The  Right  Worshipful  the  Mayor  of  Exeter  and  myself  are 
hand  and  glove.  We  drink  Church  and  King  together  upon 
extraordinary  occasions  at  the  Guildhall ;  but  when  he  does  me 
the  honour  to  dine,  we  leave  out  the  divine  part  of  the  toast, 
which  makes  him  suspect  my  religion,  and  he  cannot  help  think- 
ing that  the  officers  of  the  army  are  no  better  than  they  should 
be.  The  people  seem  to  be  tolerably  well  disposed  towards  us 
at  present.  How  long  they  will  continue  in  such  good  humour 
it  is  quite  uncertain.  I  hope  it  will  last  our  time,  for  as  the 
town  has  nothing  in  it  either  inviting  or  entertaining,  the 
circumstances  of  a  civil  war  would  make  it  intolerable.  I  am  in 
a  perfect  solitude  with  a  crowd  of  people  around,  for  all  our 
conversable  officers  are  sent  off  upon  different  duties,  and  the 
inhabitants  are  of  a  species  not  to  be  frequented.  There  are 
some  sensible,  well-bred  men  amongst  the  clergy  that  are  seldom 
seen.     The  Bishop  was  very  civil,  but  he  is  gone  to  Parliament.^ 

The  night  of  dreadful  thunder  which  affected  you  did  not  in 
the  least  disturb  my  rest.  Nothing  wakes  me,  which  I  reckon  a 
misfortune,  and  I  draw  an  inference  from  it  to  the  disadvantage 
of  my  future  affairs.  Sound  sleep  is  the  mark  of  an  inactive 
mind,  and  such  are  never  great  or  useful ;  but,  to  balance  it, 
quiet  rest  and  a  clear  conscience  are  constant  companions. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Exeter,  Dec.  6th,  1764. 

Dear  Madam, — ^The  good  account  you  give  of  yourself 
rejoices  me  most  sincerely.  I  am  almost  tempted  to  go  to  Bath 
for  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  free  from  pain,  and  if  you  stay  till 
next  month,  I  hope  it  will  be  in  my  power  to  call  upon  you  for 
a  day  or  two  on  my  way  to  Bristol,  and  through  the  recruiting 
quarters  ;  the  state  of  our  regimental  affairs  will  keep  me  longer 
at  quarters  than  I  expected,  and  so  long,  that  I  shall  not  be 
absent  above  a  month  or  5  weeks  in  the  spring ;  a  little  before 
we  embark,  you  can't  fill  up  too  much  of  your  time  with  amuse- 
ments, it  is  cheerfulness  and  ease  that  will  prolong  your  life  and 
that  is  not  to  be  had,  but  in  some  well  suited  society.  We  that  are 
young  and  in  the  world  have  a  thousand  different  ways  of  employing 
ourselves  and  of  getting  through  our  time,  it  is  not  so  with  people 
more  advanced  in  years,  and  though  I  am  not  particularly  fond  of 
cards  myself,  yet  I  think  they  are  reasonable  and  very  innocent 
^  Dr.  George  Lavington,  Bishop  of  Exeter. 


MAJOR  MAXWELL  245 

instruments  of  diversion ;  and  I  am  always  sorry  when  I  suffer 
myself  to  censure  an  entertainment  that  is  quite  harmless,  purely 
because  it  is  not  to  my  taste  ;  my  meaning  when  I  speak  upon 
that  point  is,  that  young  folks  should  be  careful  of  engaging  in 
any  pursuit  that  may  sacrifice  the  hours  of  their  improvement, 
and  that  they  who  have  the  warmest  of  tempers  are  most  likely 
to  push  into  excess  that  way,  as  in  all  things  else,  which  they  are 
bent  upon.  It  is  time  my  Lady  Grey  should  discard  me  and 
take  a  younger  lover.  I  am  really  not  worth  a  farthing ;  but, 
however,  she  may  be  assured  that  I  am  now  as  much  in  love  with 
her,  as  with  any  woman  in  England,  a  fact  that  she  seemed  to 
doubt  the  last  time  I  saw  her. 

The  company  at  Bath  (by  your  account)  may  admit  of 
some  increase  without  being  sensibly  felt ;  I  suppose  they  hold 
out  pretty  well,  till  after  Christmas,  when  the  shows  in  the  capital 
begin  to  be  most  in  vogue,  and  it  is  fashionable  to  be  there. 

There  is  a  widow  at  Bristol  who  has,  or  seems  to  have,  a 
kindness  for  the  Major,  I  wish  she  may  prevail  with  him  to  rest 
in  her  arms  from  his  military  labours.  Although  we  should  lose 
a  good  officer  by  the  retreat  of  our  Major,  yet  in  favour  of  one 
who  has  as  fair  pretensions,  I  hope  she  will  take  him  to  herself. 
But  it  is  a  doubt  with  me  whether  if  he  should  marry  the  widow, 
he  could  be  brought  to  quit  the  service. 

Maxwell  ^  dances  remarkably  well  for  a  man  of  his  uncommon 
size.  I  suppose  he  is  much  liked  at  Bath,  for  I  daresay  he  is 
much  known — he  is  the  best  humoured  man  alive.  Poor  Hennis 
(alias  Bardolph)  had  such  a  cold  while  he  was  at  Bath,  that  he 
could  not  go  out  of  his  lodgings,  and  so  escaped  being  seen.  I 
have  so  many  letters  to  send  to  poor  subalterns  and  recruiting 
officers,  that  I  can''t  spare  a  frank ;  and  I  have  so  much  to  do 
before  the  post  goes  out  that  I  must  make  an  end  with  wishing 
you  and  my  father  the  best  health.  My  duty  to  him. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 
A  short  note  to  an  old  friend  was  penned  a  few  days  later. 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

Exeter,  9<A  December,  1754. 

Dear   Rickson, — I   was   obliged   to  Governor  Trapaud   for 
intelligence  of  my  little  friend;  and  though  I  cannot  rejoice 
1  Afterwards  Lieutenant-Colonel  Hamilton  Maxwell. 


246     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

much  in  your  present  situation,  yet  I  think  you  will  make  your- 
self and  your  acquaintance  easy  and  happy  wherever  you  are. 
The  Governor  said  you  intended  to  write ;  let  me  desire  you  to 
put  so  good  a  resolve  into  quick  execution,  and  tell  me  how  it 
fares  with  you  in  that  remote  quarter.  I  admire  the  goodness  of 
Providence  in  this  one  thing  (amongst  thousands  that  are  worthy 
of  admiration),  that,  in  whatever  situation  a  man  happens  to  be 
placed,  the  mind  is  so  framed,  that  it  works  itself  out  some 
occupation  and  finds  something  or  other  to  make  a  pleasure  of; 
supposing  that  no  distant  object  has  taken  violently  hold  of  one's 
affections,  or  that  we  are  unreasonably  bent  upon  some  absent 
imagined  satisfaction.  Trapaud  thinks  he  is  very  happy  in 
having  you  with  him,  and  I  think  so  too.  Pray  how  do  you 
think  upon  the  matter  ?  and  what  sort  of  life  do  you  lead  ? 

I  shall  be  here  a  month  or  six  weeks  longer,  within  which 
time  I  hope  to  learn  good  tidings  of  you  from  yourself.  I 
heartily  wish  you  well. 

I  am,  my  dear  friend. 

Your  affectionate  and  faithful  servant, 

James  Wolfe. 

When  the  Christmas  holidays  came  Wolfe  rode  over  to  Bath, 
where  both  his  parents  then  were,  and  spent  ten  days  with  them. 
Thither  came  tidings  of  the  death  of  the  Earl  of  Albemarle, 
and  the  consequent  succession  of  his  Colonel,  Lord  Bury,  to  the 
peerage.  As  Lord  Albemarle  he  would  probably  have  sufficient 
influence  to  obtain  a  post  of  some  lucrative  nature,  and  might 
therefore  be  expected  to  relinquish  the  colonelcy  of  the  20th.  On 
the  3rd  of  January  Wolfe  was  back  again  at  Rougemont  Castle, 
where  he  found  a  letter  from  head-quarters  awaiting  him,  ordering 
him  to  hold  himself  in  readiness  to  preside  at  a  court-martial  on 
board  the  fleet  at  Bristol. 

During  the  time  that  Wolfe  was  at  Bristol  attending  the  court- 
martial  which  sentenced  several  men  to  capital  punishment,  the 
weather  was  especially  severe,  and  the  trying  nature  of  his  duties 
had  its  natural  effect  upon  his  spirits  as  the  east  winds  had  over  his 
health. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Bristol,  19th  January,  1753. 

Dear  Madam, — Folks  are  surprised  to  see  the  meagre,  con- 
sumptive,  decaying   figure   of  the  son,    when  the   father  and 


A  SOLDIER'S  LONGEVITY  247 

mother  preserve  such  good  looks ;  and  people  are  not  easily 
persuaded  that  I  am  one  of  the  family.  The  campaigns  of 
1743,  "'4!,  '5,  '6,  and  'T,  stripped  me  of  my  bloom,  and  the  winters 
in  Scotland  and  at  Dover  have  brought  me  also  to  old  age  and 
infirmity,  and  this  without  any  remarkable  intemperance.  A 
few  years,  more  or  less,  are  of  very  little  consequence  to  the 
common  run  of  men,  and  therefore  I  need  not  lament  that  I  am 
perhaps  somewhat  nearer  my  end  than  others  of  my  time.  I 
think  and  write  upon  these  points  without  being  at  all  moved. 
It  is  not  the  vapours,  but  a  desire  I  have  to  be  familiar  with 
those  ideas  which  frighten  and  terrify  the  half  of  mankind  that 
makes  me  speak  upon  the  subject  of  my  dissolution. 

While  realizing  that  the  nature  of  his  constitution  was  such  as 
made  long  life  extremely  improbable,  at  the  same  time  he  desired 
that  those  years  that  remained  to  him  should  be  of  use  to  himself 
and  the  country.  He  therefore  by  no  means  was  content  to  remain 
stationary,  and  die  at  home  a  Lieutenant-Colonel  on  the  retired 
list.  So  far  all  his  plans  for  further  advancement  had  been  baulked  ; 
but  there  was  still  another  way  and  this  occurred  to  his  friend 
General  Mordaunt.  He  suggested  that  the  old  General  should 
resign  the  colonelcy  of  Wolfe's  regiment  in  favour  of  his  son  who 
would  settle  an  annuity  upon  his  sire.  But  James  did  not  enter- 
tain the  proposal  favourably. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Exeter,  *Jth  February^  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  writ  to  Sir  John  Mordaunt  by  this  post 
to  decline  his  obliging  offers  of  service  with  thankfulness  and 
gratitude.  A  soldier's  life  in  war  is  too  great  an  uncertainty 
for  you  to  hazard  a  necessary  part  of  your  income  upon.  I 
should  be  afraid  to  die,  more  than  is  natural,  if  it  left  my  parents 
unprovided  of  a  subsistence  depending  upon  my  life.  Besides, 
how  far  an  expensive  war  may  affect  the  funds  I  know  not.  Your 
better  judgment  upon  this  point  may  furnish  you  with  reasons 
for  or  against  any  alteration  of  your  affairs.  Some  security 
there  should  be  for  my  mother  if  she  should  outlive  you,  and 
me,  and  the  public  credit, — a  thing,  in  my  mind,  not  altogether 
impossible. 

As  I  said  in  my  last  letter,  we  expect  to  go  on  board  the 
fleet,  and  'tis  a  service  that  we  all  like,  from  the  importance  of 
a  success  at  sea,  to  which  we  should  be  happy  to  contribute  ever 


248    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

SO  little.  I  know,  if  your  health  and  time  of  day  would  allow, 
you  would  offer  your  services  to  the  good  old  King.  He  will, 
however,  be  pleased  to  see  what  remains  of  his  faithful  old 
soldiers,  and  I  hope  you  now  and  then  appear  with  the  rest, 
and  give  those  proofs  of  your  attachment.  Excuse  the  freedom 
I  take  to  say  that  you  can't  better  exert  your  strength  in  the 
spring  than  by  going  a  few  days  to  your  regiment,  to  look  at 
them  with  a  cheerful,  friendly  face,  and  to  see  if  there  be  any- 
thing wanting  which  is  in  your  power  to  supply.  Such  an  at- 
tention pleases  the  troops,  and  must  be  acceptable  to  his  Royal 
Highness  the  Duke. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

For  some  weeks  he  had  been  warned  to  prepare  to  go  on  board  the 
fleet  for  service  at  sea.  But  although  he  held  his  men  in  readiness 
nothing  definite  arrived.  In  this  state  of  suspense  there  seems  to 
have  been  a  suspicion  that  the  Twentieth  might  be  sent  to  America. 
The  new  Earl  of  Albemarle  (Lord  Bury)  had  obtained  the  com- 
mand of  a  troop  of  cavalry,  and  the  Twentieth  was  now  without  a 
Colonel.  Who  would  be  appointed  ?  At  this  juncture  his  mother 
wrote  him  that  his  uncle.  Major  Walter  Wolfe,  had  a  plan  to  secure 
an  East  India  Company  appointment  whereby  he  would  be  enabled 
to  do  his  nephew  a  good  turn.  What  if  Wolfe  had  been  induced 
to  serve  under  Clive's  banners  in  India ! 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Exeter,  11^^  February,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — We  are  in  expectation  of  sudden  orders  for 
some  service ;  what  it  is  we  know  not.  If  we  are  ordered  on  board 
the  fleet  either  to  cruise,  or  to  Virginia,  it  will  be  absolutely 
necessary  that  I  get  myself  furnished  with  a  quantity  of  coarse 
shirts ;  and  how  to  do  it  I  really  am  at  a  loss  to  know,  and  if  we 
were  to  take  the  field  I  should  be  wholly  ruined.  This  is  the  state 
of  my  affairs, — I  am  eight  and  twenty  years  of  age,  a  Lieutenant- 
colonel  of  Foot,  and  I  cannot  say  that  I  am  master  of  fifty 
pounds.  My  preparations  for  Minorca  have  run  me  a  ground 
and,  in  short,  I  am  so  distressed  that  I  feel  myself  a  little  uneasy, 
and  am  surrounded  with  miserable  devils  in  the  same  circum- 
stances, to  whom  a  battle  would  be  a  happy  event.  Don't  trouble 
yourself  about  my  room  or  my  bedclothes ;  too  much  care  and 
delicacy  at  this  time  would  enervate  me,  and  complete  the  de- 
struction of  a  tottering  constitution.     Such  as  it  is,  it  must  serve 


HIS   FATHER'S   BOUNTY  249 

me  now,  and  I'll  make  the  best  of  it,  and  the  fittest  use  while  it 
holds. 

My  uncle  Wafs  scheme  is  either  very  extravagant  or  a  very 
prudent  one.  If  my  uncle  means  to  mend  his  health  by  a  soft 
climate,  he  can't  take  a  better  method  than  what  you  say  he 
proposes.  If  his  intentions  are  to  be  useful  to  me,  I  can't  but 
think  myself  highly  obliged  to  him  ;  although  I  could  well  wish 
that  he  would  not  put  himself  out  of  his  way  upon  my  account 
as  it  will  not  answer  the  end  that  I  know  he  proposes.  The  case, 
as  it  appears  to  me,  is  this, — that  the  uncle  has  much  more  am- 
bition than  the  nephew,  and  that  he  has  a  better  opinion  of  me 
than  I  have  of  myself,  and  far  better  than  I  deserve.  He  wants 
that  I  should  make  a  considerable  figure  in  our  profession ;  and 
as  he  is  a  skilful  man  himself  he  would  willingly  contribute  to  it. 
His  letters  are  all  calculated  to  answer  that  end,  but  he  never 
mentioned  a  syllable  to  me  of  his  late  project.  If  he  had  I 
should  certainly  have  opposed  it. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Of  course,  Wolfe  had  merely  to  hint  to  his  parents  that  he  had 
pressing  need  for  money  in  case  the  expected  orders  came,  to  receive 
instantly  a  promise  of  funds.  For  the  old  General,  having  got  all 
his  arrears  and  turned  a  pretty  penny  in  the  usual  way  with 
regimental  commanders,  was  now  fairly  well-to-do. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Exeter,  l^th  February y  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — By  my  mother's  letter,  which  came  to  me  this 
morning,  I  find  that  your  bounty  and  liberality  keep  pace  (as 
they  usually  do)  with  my  necessities.  I  shall  not  abuse  your 
kindness,  nor  receive  it  unthankfully,  and  what  use  I  make  of  it 
shall  be  for  your  honour  and  the  King's  service,  an  employment 
worthy  the  hand  that  gives  it.  I  cannot  bear  the  thoughts  of 
asking  these  sort  of  supplies  from  any  foreign  purse,  and  therefore 
should  have  been  more  distressed  without  your  assistance  than 
can  well  be  described.  I  would  not  wish  that  anything  should 
take  off*  my  attention  from  the  most  important  parts  of  my 
duty ;  nor  feel  myself  cramped  and  tied  down  by  the  narrow- 
ness of  my  circumstances  at  the  time  when  the  thoughts  should 
be  free  and  at  large.  If  a  man  be  ill  served,  or  ill  armed  in  the 
field,  he  is  deprived  of  the  necessary  aids  to  his  well-doing ;  and 


250    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

that  spirit  will  guide  others  but  indifferently  which  bends  under 
its  own  wants.  I  shall  husband  your  gifts  with  discretion,  and 
be  gratefully  mindful  of  your  goodness. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 


Mrs.  Wolfe  had  conveyed  from  the  old  General  a  good  deal 
of  counsel  founded  upon  his  own  long  experience  in  the  service. 
He  could  never  forget  the  disastrous  business  of  Carthagena  fifteen 
years  before,  and  how  ill  the  country  was  served  by  its  naval  com- 
manders, how  miserably  the  fleet  was  victualled,  and  the  other 
horrid  details  of  death  and  disease  which  sprang  from  incompetence 
and  mismanagement.  Consequently  he  was  greatly  loath  to  let 
his  son  go  upon  such  a  service  if  any  other  were  honourably  to 
be  had.  After  all,  the  veteran  was  not  to  be  blamed.  He  was  a 
soldier  of  the  old  school.  He  saw  little  as  yet  to  justify  confidence 
in  the  new.  Moreover,  he  liked  his  ease  and  did  not  believe  in 
courting  difficulties.  His  son  was  of  another  stamp :  he  was 
unhappy  when  at  his  ease ;  he  rejoiced  in  difficulties  and  hardships 
if  they  led  to  what  his  soul  craved. 


To  HIS  Mother. 

Exeter,  l^th  February ,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — May  I  be  permitted  to  say  that  my  father's 
apprehension,  and  consequently  yours,  are  not  well  grounded  ? 
He  was  on  board  the  fleet  in  the  beginning  of  the  war,  preceded 
by  a  peace  of  thirty  years,  in  which  the  sea  officers  as  well  as 
ours  had  almost  forgot  their  trade.  Matters  are  not  now  so 
circumstanced,  and  there  are  many  commanders  in  the  fleet  who 
are  men  of  high  courage  and  spirit.  Let  me  add  that  things 
were  inconveniences,  and  disagreeable  ones  at  his  time  of  life 
which  are  not  so  at  mine.  I  please  myself  that  we  are  likely  to 
do  our  country  good  service  by  going  on  board  the  fleet.  The 
sickness  that  we  feel  at  first  will  soon  be  over,  and  I  flatter 
myself,  if  occasion  be,  that  we  shall  spur  them  on  to  their  duty. 
The  success  of  our  fleet  in  the  beginning  of  the  war  is  of  the 
utmost  importance,  and  we  shall  have  great  merit  in  contribut- 
ing ever  so  little  towards  it.  It  is  no  time  to  think  of  what  is 
convenient  or  agreeable ;  that  service  is  certainly  the  best  in 
which  we  are  most  useful.  For  my  part,  I  determined  never  to 
give  myself  a  moment's  concern  about  the  nature  of  the  duty 


PARTS   WITH   HIS   DOGS  251 

which  his  Majesty  is  pleased  to  order  us  upon  ;  and  whether  it 
be  by  sea  or  by  land  that  we  are  to  act  in  obedience  to  his  com- 
mands, I  hope  that  we  shall  conduct  ourselves  so  as  to  command 
— his  approbation.  It  will  be  sufficient  comfort  to  you  two,  as 
far  as  my  person  is  concerned,  at  least  it  will  be  a  reasonable  con- 
solation, to  reflect  that  the  Power  which  has  hitherto  preserved 
me  may,  if  it  be  His  pleasure,  continue  to  do  so  ;  if  not,  that  is 
but  a  few  days  or  a  few  years  more  or  less,  and  that  those  who 
perish  in  their  duty,  and  in  the  service  of  their  country,  die 
honourably.  I  hope  I  shall  have  resolution  and  firmness  enough 
to  meet  every  appearance  of  danger  without  great  concern,  and 
not  be  over-solicitous  about  the  event. 

The  dogs  are  to  be  disposed  of  as  follows — you  are  to  have 
Flurry  instead  of  Romp,  and  Romp  is  to  be  given  to  Sergeant 
Goodman  whenever  he  calls  for  her.  The  two  puppies  I  must 
desire  you  to  keep  a  little  longer,  till  I  can  dispose  of  them  so  as 
not  to  be  troublesome  to  you.  I  can't  part  with  either  of  them, 
but  must  find  good  and  secure  quarters  for  them  as  well  as  my 
friend  Caesar,  who  had  great  merit  and  much  good  humour.  I 
have  given  Sancho  to  Lord  Howe,  so  that  I  am  now  reduced  to 
two  spaniels  and  one  pointer,  all  of  excellent  kinds.  Beckwith  is 
just  come  into  the  room.  He  always  puts  a  stop  to  my  writing  ; 
I  must  therefore  present  my  duty  to  my  Father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  put  both  your  letters  under  one  cover ;  the  thanks 
that  are  due  to  one  are  due  to  the  other,  for  your  intentions  and 
kindness  to  your  son  are  alike.  I  am  now  able  to  come  to  you, 
and  may  have  leave  for  eight  or  ten  days  perhaps.  Before  I 
could  not  undertake  the  journey  without  dreading  the  expense. 

Jemmy's  conduct  astonishes  me.  He  should  blush  to  be  any- 
where but  at  his  colours  at  this  time.  A  young  lieutenant 
loitering  up  and  down  Greenwich  Park  !  If  he  belonged  to  us  I 
would  soon  bring  him  to  quarters,  and  find  him  full  employment. 
What  is  my  old  friend  about  ?  If  this  comes  to  be  known, 
Jemmy's  reputation  must  suffer  ;  the  monthly  returns  of  his 
regiment  will  publish  his  idleness.  Jack  is  of  other  mettle,  and 
has  good  need  of  it.  It  has  fallen  hard  upon  that  poor  lad  ;  I 
wish  the  other  had  his  share.  Where  does  Jack  go  next  ?  He 
will  have  visited  all  the  remote  corners  of  the  earth.    I  beg  you'll 


252    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

tell  him  that  I  wish  him  well,  that  I  regret  his  hard  lot,  and 
that  I  should  have  been  much  pleased  to  have  seen  my  old  friend 
and  schoolfellow. 

The  "  Jack  "  of  the  foregoing  was  indeed  of  good  mettle,  for  he 
lived  to  be  General  John  Streton,  and  survived  until  1803. 

While  Wolfe  was  still  at  Exeter  expecting  orders  to  embark, 
he  had  news  that  his  old  friend  Rickson  had  returned  from  Nova 
Scotia  and  had  been  sent  with  his  regiment  to  Fort  Augustus. 
Probably  no  letter  that  Wolfe  ever  penned  exhibits  the  fervour 
of  his  friendship  or  his  professional  zeal  in  so  strong  a  light  as 
that  which  he  wrote  to  Rickson  in  answer  to  one  from  the  "  little 
Captain." 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

Exeter,  "Jth  March,  1755. 

My  dear  Friend, — Just  as  I  received  your  letter  the  drum 
beat  to  arms,  and  we  have  been  in  a  bustle  ever  since.  Now 
that  it  has  become  a  little  calm  again,  I  will  gather  my  wits 
together,  and  collect  my  friendly  sentiments  (a  little  dispersed 
with  the  sound  of  war,)  to  answer  it.  Be  so  good  for  the  time 
to  come  to  presume  with  yourself  that  you  have  a  right  to 
correspond  with  me  whenever  you  please  and  as  often ;  and  be 
persuaded  that  you  cannot  do  me  a  greater  pleasure  than  by 
writing  to  me.  I  want  to  persuade  you  that  neither  time,  nor 
distance,  nor  different  fortunes,  either  has  or  ever  will,  make  the 
least  alteration  in  my  affection  towards  your  little  person ;  and 
that  in  all  probability  I  shall  die  as  much  your  friend  as  I  have 
lived,  whether  at  the  end  of  one  or  twenty  years,  of  which 
disposition  in  me,  if  I  had  opportunity  to  convince  you,  you 
would  have  sufficient  proof.  Though  I  know  how  reasonable 
and  philosophic  a  man  you  are,  yet  I  shall  not  allow  you  quite 
as  much  merit  as  I  would  to  another  in  your  situation.  The 
remembrance  of  Nova  Scotia  makes  Fort  Augustus  a  paradise ; 
your  sufferings  there  will  be  no  small  aid  to  your  contentment, 
for  nothing  can  well  happen  of  greater  trial  than  what  you 
have  already  overcome. 

Since  I  began  my  letter  to  you  yesterday,  there'^s  a  fresh  and 
a  loud  report  of  war.  More  ships  are  ordered  to  be  fitted  out ; 
and  we  must  expect  further  preparations  suited  to  the  greatness 
of  the  occasion.  You  in  the  north  will  be  now  and  then 
alarmed.     Such  a  succession  of  errors,  and  such  a  strain  of  ill- 


SCOTCH   GARRISONS  253 

behaviour  as  the  last  Scotch  war  (the  rebeUion  of  1745)  did 
produce,  can  hardly,  I  believe,  be  matched  in  history.  Our 
future  annals  will,  I  hope,  be  filled  with  more  stirring  events. 

What  if  the  garrisons  of  the  forts  had  been  under  the  orders 
of  a  prudent,  resolute  man  (yourself  for  instance)  would  not  they 
have  found  means  to  stifle  the  rebellion  in  its  birth  ?  and  might 
not  they  have  acted  more  like  soldiers  and  good  subjects  than  it 
appears  they  did?  What  would  have  been  the  effects  of  a 
sudden  march  into  the  middle  of  that  clan  who  were  the  first  to 
move  ?  What  might  have  been  done  by  means  of  hostages  of 
wives  and  children,  or  the  chiefs  themselves  ?  How  easy  a  small 
body,  united,  prevents  the  junction  of  distant  corps ;  and  how 
favourable  the  country  where  you  are  for  such  a  manoeuvre,  if, 
notwithstanding  all  precautions  they  get  together,  a  body  of 
troops  may  make  a  diversion,  by  laying  waste  a  country  that  the 
male  inhabitants  have  left,  to  prosecute  rebellious  schemes. 
How  soon  must  they  return  to  the  defence  of  their  property — 
such  as  it  is — their  wives,  their  children,  their  houses  and  their 
cattle  ? 

But  above  all,  the  secret  sudden  night-march  into  the  midst 
of  them ;  great  patrols  of  50,  60,  or  100  men  each,  to  terrify 
them ;  letters  to  the  chiefs,  threatening  fire  and  sword,  and 
certain  destruction  if  they  dare  to  stir ;  movements  that  seem 
mysterious  to  keep  the  enemy'*s  attention  upon  you,  and  their 
fears  awake  ;  these  and  the  like,  which  your  experience,  reading 
and  good  sense  would  point  out,  are  means  to  prevent  mischief. 

If  one  was  to  ask  what  preparations  were  made  for  the 
defence  of  the  forts,  I  believe  they  would  be  found  very  in- 
sufficient. There  are  some  things  that  are  absolutely  necessaiy 
for  an  obstinate  resistance — and  such  there  always  should  be 
against  rebels — as  tools,  fascines,  turf  or  sods,  arms  for  the 
breach  (long  spontoons  or  halberds),  palisades  innumerable; 
whole  trees  converted  into  that  use,  stuck  in  the  ditch  to  hinder 
an  assault.  No  one  of  these  articles  was  thought  of,  either  at 
Fort  Augustus  or  Fort  George ;  and  in  short,  nothing  was 
thought  of  but  how  to  escape  from  an  enemy  most  worthy  of 
contempt.  One  vigorous  sortie  would  have  raised  the  siege  of 
Fort  Augustus  ;  100  men  would  have  nailed  up  the  battery,  or 
carried  the  artillery  into  the  castle. 

I  wish  you  may  be  besieged  in  the  same  manner  ;  you  will 
put  a  speedy  end  to  the  rebellion,  and  foil  their  arms  in  the 
first  attempt ;  les  Messieurs  de  Guise  se  sont  tres  mal  comporte  ! 


254    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

If  there'*s  war,  I  hope  the  General  in  the  North  will  not  disperse 
the  troops  by  small  parties,  as  has  been  practised  hitherto ;  but 
rather  make  choice  of  certain  good  stations  for  bodies  that  can 
defend  themselves,  or  force  their  way  home  (to  the  forts)  if 
occasion  require  it.  At  Laggan  Achadrom,  for  example,  they 
should  build  a  strong  redoubt,  surrounded  with  rows  of  palisades, 
and  trees,  capable  to  contain  200  men  at  least.  This  is  a  post 
of  great  importance,  and  should  be  maintained  in  a  most 
determined  manner,  and  the  MacDonalds  might  knock  their 
heads  against  it  to  very  little  purpose. 

Old  doting  Humphrey  ^  who  is  newly  married,  I  find  will  be  a 
good  deal  occupied  at  home,  and  fondly  no  doubt ;  so  you  must 
not  expect  much  aid  from  that  quarter ;  there''s  our  weak  side. 

My  McPherson  should  have  a  couple  of  hundred  men  in  his 
neighbourhood,  with  orders  to  massacre  the  whole  clan  if  they 
show  the  least  symptom  of  rebellion.  They  are  a  war-like  tribe 
and  he  is  a  cunning,  resolute  fellow  himself.  They  should  be 
narrowly  watched ;  and  the  party  there  should  be  well 
commanded.^ 

Trapaud  will  have  told  you  that  I  tried  to  take  hold  of  that 
famous  man  with  a  very  small  detachment.  I  gave  the  sergeant 
orders  in  case  he  should  succeed,  and  was  attacked  by  the  clan 
with  a  view  to  rescue  their  chief  to  Tcill  him  instantly^  which  I 
concluded  would  draw  on  the  destruction  of  the  detachment  and 
furnish  me  with  a  sufficient  pretext  (without  waiting  for  any 
instructions)  to  march  into  their  country  oil  faurais  fait  main 
basse,  sans  misericorde.  Would  you  believe  that  I  am  so  bloody  ? 
It  was  my  real  intention,  and  I  hope  such  execution  will  be  done 
upon  the  first  that  revolt,  to  teach  them  their  duty  and  keep 
the  Highlands  in  awe.  They  are  a  people  better  governed  by 
fear  than  favour. 

My  little  governor  talked  to  me,  some  time  ago,  of  a  parcel 
of  musket-balls  that  belonged  to  us  which  he  offered  to  send  us. 
We  fire  bullets  continually,  and  have  great  need  of  them  ;  but 
as  I  foresee  much  difficulty  and  expense  in  the  removal,  I  wish 
he  would  bestow  them,  or  a  part,  upon  you ;  and  let  me  recom- 
mend the  practice,  you'll  soon  find  the  advantage  of  it.  Marksmen 
are  nowhere  so  necessary  as  in  a  mountainous  country ;  besides, 
firing  balls  at  objects  teaches  the  soldiers  to  level  incomparably, 

^  Sir  Humphrey  Bland,  Commander-in-Chief  in  Scotland^  married  to  Miss 
Betty  Dalrymple. 

2  Evan  MTherson,  of  Cluuy,  was  Lord  Lovat's  son-in-law.  He  became 
an  outlaw  for  years  after  CuUoden. 


ADVICE   TO   RICKSON  255 

makes  the  recruits  steady,  and  removes  the  foolish  apprehension 
that  seizes  young  soldiers  when  they  first  load  their  arms  with 
bullets.  We  fire,  first  singly,  then  by  files,  1,  2,  3,  or  more, 
then  by  ranks,  and  lastly  by  platoons ;  and  the  soldiers  see  the 
effects  of  their  shot  especially  at  a  mark,  or  upon  water.  We 
shoot  obliquely,  and  in  different  situations  of  ground  from 
heights  downwards  and  contrary  wise.  I  use  the  freedom  to 
mention  this  to  you,  not  as  one  prescribing  to  another,  but  to  a 
friend  who  may  accept  or  reject;  and  because,  possibly  it  may 
not  have  been  thought  of  by  your  commander,  and  I  have 
experience  of  its  great  utility. 

I  have  not  been  in  London  all  this  winter.  If  the  state  of 
our  affairs  had  permitted  it,  I  should  certainly  have  waited  upon 
your  sister.  You  could  not  propose  a  thing  more  agreeable-  to 
me ;  for  I  think  I  must  necessarily  love  all  your  kindred,  at 
least  all  that  love  you.  I  hope  she  has  recovered  the  hurt 
occasioned  by  that  unlucky  accident. 

Pray  ask  Trap  if  he  knows  anything  of  Lady  Culloden,^  how 
she  is  as  to  health  ?  for  I  have  a  particular  esteem  for  her,  am 
obliged  to  her  for  civilities  shown  me,  and  interest  myself  in  her 
welfare.  She  seemed,  poor  lady,  to  be  in  a  very  ill  state  of  health 
when  I  was  in  that  country. 

I  could  pass  my  time  very  pleasantly  at  Fort  Augustus  upon 
your  plan  and  with  your  assistance.  There  is  no  solitude  with 
a  friend. 

I  hope  to  hear  from  you  now  and  then,  as  your  inclination 
prompts  or  your  leisure  allows  ;  the  oftener  the  better.  I  wish 
you  all  manner  of  good,  and  am  truly,  my  dear  friend, 

Your  faithful  and  affectionate  Servant, 

J.  W. 

My  compliments  to  Mrs.  Trapaud  and  the  Governor. 
I  was  interrupted  in  the  beginning  of  the  letter,  and  the  post 
came  in  from  London  before  I  began  afresh. 

The  second  paragraph  of  the  following  is  significant  of  the 
relations  with  regard  to  pecuniary  matters  subsisting  between 
father  and  son. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Exeter,  12  March,  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — I  do  hope  that  a  proper  confidence  will  always 
subsist  between  us.     I  have  no  interest  distinct  from  yours,  nor 

^  Mrs.  Forbes. 


256     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

many  passions  to  gratify,  or  if  I  have  any,  they  shall  always  be 
subservient  to  your  pleasure,  for  now  I  think  I  have  them  under 
pretty  good  command. 

Whenever  I  may  have  occasion  to  desire  the  aid  of  your  purse, 
it  will  generally  be  with  a  view  to  do  you  honour,  and  to  enable 
me  to  serve  his  Majesty,  as  you  yourself  would  serve  him.  If 
there  is  a  war,  I  must  either  rise  or  fall,  and  in  either  case  am 
provided  for;  but  as  I  would  willingly  enjoy  the  society  of  my 
friends  without  being  troublesome  to  them,  I  should  rather  prefer 
the  former,  as  the  means  of  doing  it,  and  having  as  yet  some 
little  relish  of  life. 

Three  Companies  of  Waldgrave's  late  regiment  are  landed  at 
Bideford,  a  ship  with  the  remaining  seven  Companies  lost  her 
passage  by  running  on  shore  in  the  harbour  of  Corke,  but  by  the 
latter  end  of  August  I  hope  they  will  be  over. 

It  seems  H.R.H.  the  Duke  looks  upon  Carlisle  and  Berwick 
as  places  of  great  importance.  Charles  Desclouseaux  is  made 
Lt.  Governor  of  one,  and  Billy  Billings  of  our  regiment 
is  fort  Major  of  the  other.  Officers  of  equal  skill  and 
capacity,  and  entirely  calculated  for  an  obstinate  and  vigorous 
defence. 

The  promotions  in  your  regiment  and  the  removal  of  Wright 
are  marks  of  the  Duke's  goodness,  and  great  proofs  of  his  ex- 
cellent sense.  It  is  a  sound  piece  of  politics  to  put  the  troops 
in  good  humour  before  a  war,  and  to  keep  them  afterwards  so 
by  repeated  acts  of  justice  and  kindness.  The  affections  of 
military  men  are  easily  won,  and  as  easily  kept ;  they  only  ask 
regular  preferment  and  to  be  treated  with  common  humanity. 

I  have  had  a  letter  from  Sir  John  Mordaunt  very  lately  in 
which  he  mentions  his  having  seen  you  at  Court,  and  I  hope  he 
will  see  you  there  again  before  long. 

Admiral  Mostyn  told  me  that  Bockland's  Regiment  and  ours 
were  intended  for  the  fleet.  I  had  like  intelligence  from  London  ; 
and  till  very  lately  was  fully  persuaded  of  the  truth  of  it. 
Musketry  they  must  have,  and  till  marines  are  raised  or  the  Irish 
Regiment  augmented  I  shall  think  it  very  possible  that  they 
may  make  use  of  us. 

The  two  letters  that  I  enclose  under  your  cover  are  for  two 
friends  as  you  see  by  the  directions.  I  do  not  know  where 
Allen  now  is,  nor  how  to  direct  to  him,  therefore  beg  the  favour 
of  you  to  send  it  to  his  mother  and  desire  her  to  take  the  trouble 
to  forward  it. 


AT   EXETER  257 

I  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother  and  with  wishes  for  your  welfare, 
cease  to  write. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

We  have  excessive  cold  weather  here,  I  am  afraid  it  is  stiU 
more  severe  to  the  eastward. 

*'Till  Marines  are  raised""  reminds  us  that  the  old   corps  of 
Marines  had  been  largely  disbanded  at  the  Peace  of  1748. 


XII 

WAITING  FOR   WAR 

The  orders  impatiently  expected  by  the  Twentieth  and  its 
Lieutenant-Colonel  never  came.  For  them  there  was  to  be  no  fight- 
ing just  yet,  but  instead  they  were  notified  that  they  must  shift 
quarters  from  Exeter  to  Winchester.  Thither  on  March  25  arrived 
Wolfe  and  his  men,  the  regiment  still  without  a  colonel,  the 
appointment  not  yet  having  been  gazetted.  Such  of  his  friends 
as  had  access  to  the  King  and  Commander-in-Chief  urged  the  justice 
of  appointing  Lieutenant-Colonel  Wolfe  to  the  vacant  post,  but 
the  King  seems  to  have  thought  him,  as  ever,  "too  young."  If 
only  war  were  declared  Wolfe  felt  confident  he  could  make  his 
way. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester^  26  March y  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — LTpon  my  arrival  here  yesterday  I  found  your 
letter  and  I  found  a  very  unsatisfactory  account  of  your  health 
in  it.  The  weather  has  been  so  uncommonly  sharp,  that  I 
feared  it  would  affect  you,  and  you  have  the  misfortune  to  feel 
all  the  changes  and  rudeness  of  climate  that  this  country  is 
subject  to.  I  can  recommend  nothing  to  you,  but  the  same 
course  that  you  have  hitherto  pursued ;  to  be  good  and  religious 
is  the  only  means  of  quieting  the  mind  under  great  afflictions, 
we  have  no  other  comfort  here  below,  nor  anything  else  worth 
our  regard.  A  little  more  stirring  in  fair  weather,  and  in  a 
light  machine,  if  you  had  one,  might  help  you ;  but  the  house 
and  a  great  chair,  is  death  or  a  life  of  misery. 

We  are  impatient  to  know  whether  peace  or  war  is  resolved 
on.  If  the  latter,  as  we  suppose,  the  troops  will  probably 
encamp  very  soon,  to  be  ready  for  all  purposes.  In  either  case 
I  must  go  to  London  for  a  few  days  to  settle  my  affairs,  and 
then  I  shall  have  the  pleasure  of  being  with  you. 

The  Marines  you  speak  of,  if  they  do  raise  any,  will  be  put 
into  Companies  of  100  men  each,  and  not  into  regiments  as  the 
newspapers  have  proclaimed,  and  these  Companies  are  to  have  a 

258 


HONEYWOOD    APPOINTED         259 

field  officer  to  inspect  them,  and  a  Lieut.  Col.  or  Major  to  every  ten 
or  twelve  Companies.  The  whole  body  of  Marines  will  be  under 
the  Lords  of  the  Admiralty  and  entirely  out  of  our  way.  But 
do  you  imagine,  if  regiments  were  raised  that  I  should  have  any, 
the  least  chance  to  succeed  ?  All  my  hope  of  success  must  be 
grounded  upon  right  and  just  pretensions.  I  must  serve  and 
serve  well  or  I  cannot  get  forward  ;  for  who  mil  be  at  the 
trouble  to  solicit  for  me  out  of  pure  friendship  ?  No  man  will 
ask  such  a  favour,  but  where  he  promises  himself,  and  expects 
something  in  return. 

I  thank  you  for  all  your  kindnesses,  and  for  the  pains  you 
bestow  upon  me.  I  should  be  sorry  if  it  brought  the  least 
distress  upon  you,  or  even  cramped  your  compassionate  and 
generous  disposition.  I  have  but  a  little  while  longer  to  be 
troublesome  to  you,  a  war  of  two  or  three  years  will,  I  hope, 
(though  I  do  not  wish  it  for  my  own  sake,  at  the  public  hazard 
and  expense)  improve  my  circumstances. 

The  sergeant  I  brought  from  London  does  not  please  me ; 
if  you  hear  by  chance  of  a  good  honest  groom  or  a  servant  that 
can  dress  a  wig,  I  pray  you  let  me  know.  I  thought  I  had  left 
a  stock  with  you — 'tis  what  I  have  most  occasion  for  at  present, 
as  mine  are  actually  worn  to  threads.  I  am  a  good  deal  out  of 
repair. 

I  am,  dear  ^Madam,  etc.. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

At  last  the  blow  fell :  Lord  Albemarle  had  hinted  that  the  regi- 
ment was  to  go  to  General  Fowke,  at  least  an  officer  of  rank.  He  now 
learnt  to  his  discomfiture  that  Lieutenant -Colonel  Philip  Honey- 
wood,  a  man  of  wealth  and  boasting  a  good  deal  of  political  influence, 
had  carried  off  the  prize,  being  gazetted  April  8, 1755.^  Wolfe  took 
this  not  a  little  to  heart,  and  for  a  moment  entertained  a  plan  for 
resigning  his  commission  if  he  could  not  procure  the  boon  of  foreign 
service.  "  It  was  at  Basingstoke  that  Lord  Albemarle  told  me.  .  .  . 
I  thought  it  was  a  little  offensive.  ...  It  has  indeed  saved  me 
some  pains  and  some  expense,  and  I  may  jog  on  in  one  of  the 
easiest  posts  in  the  army  and  sleep  and  grow  fat.*" 

War  with  France  was  looming  upon  the  horizon :  no  man  could 
tell  whether  the  cloud  would  be  dispersed  or  not.     Nominally  the 

*  "  Honeywood  was  removed  in  May  the  year  following  to  the  9tli  Dragoons. 
He  rose  to  the  rank  of  general^  and  was  many  years  Governor  of  Hull,  M.P. 
for  Appleby,  and  died  in  1785." — Wright. 

S  2 


260     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

two  nations  had  been  at  peace  since  1748,  but  in  the  far-flung 
empires  of  both  their  subjects  and  armies  had  too  many  causes  of 
dispute  to  remain  tranquil.  In  India  and  North  America  they  were, 
and  had  been,  constantly  flying  at  each  other^s  throats,  and  Wolfe 
watched  these  encounters  in  the  remote  parts  of  the  earth  with  a 
feeling  that  there,  if  all  other  chances  failed,  lay  his  destiny.  Those 
bloody  rivalries  would  never  permanently  be  allayed  but  by  some 
crushing  victory  and  defeat.  For  the  moment  in  India  there  was 
a  truce.  The  policy  of  France,  so  far  as  Canada  was  concerned,  was 
to  connect  the  two  great  territories  of  Canada  and  Louisiana,  now 
separated  by  a  thousand  leagues  of  plain  and  forest,  by  a  chain  of 
forts,  winning  the  intervening  territory  from  the  British  colonists 
in  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia. 

In  1752  the  Marquis  Duquesne  appeared  on  the  scene.  His 
orders  were  to  arrest  the  pretensions  of  the  English  to  the  Ohio 
and  Western  region  and  debar  them  from  trade  there.  The  new 
governor  began  by  dispatching  a  force  of  Canadian  Militia  to  build 
a  French  fort  on  Lake  Erie  and  other  posts  elsewhere.  When  this 
aggressive  policy  was  observed  by  the  Indians,  who  admire  vigour 
and  courage,  they  were  led  naturally  to  range  themselves  on  the 
side  of  the  French.  During  the  next  few  years  battles  and  skir- 
mishes for  the  supremacy  of  the  Ohio  region  were  frequent,  and  it 
is  during  this  period  that  we  first  hear  of  a  youthful  Virginian 
whose  name,  like  Wolfe"'s,  was  destined  to  be  world-famous.  This 
was  George  Washington,  who,  five  years  Wolfe''s  junior,  had,  at  the 
age  of  nineteen,  at  the  beginning  of  the  Seven  Years'  War,  been 
appointed  adjutant  of  the  Provincial  troops,  and  in  1754  com- 
manded a  regiment  against  the  French  at  Fort  Duquesne.  In  the 
Braddock  disaster  in  the  following  year  he  was  the  only  aide  not 
killed  or  wounded,  although  two  horses  were  shot  under  him. 
Braddock's  defeat  made  conflict  on  a  large  scale  in  North  America 
inevitable. 


To  HIS  Father. 

Winchester,  12th  Aprils  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — Now  that  we  have  a  Colonel  who  will  perhaps 
think  it  his  duty  to  be  sometimes  with  his  Regiment,  my  prison 
will  be  a  little  enlarged.  Col.  Honeywood's  being  put  to  this 
Regiment  is  no  compliment  to  me,  as  I  shall  explain  to  you 
hereafter.  If  the  like  civilities  are  done  in  time  to  come,  they 
will  likewise  be  obliged  to  find  out  a  new  Lieut.  Colonel ;  for  as 


FLEET    AT    PORTSMOUTH  261 

I  have  told  my  Lord  Albemarle,  I  am  resolved,  I  shan't  serve  one 
moment  longer  than  I  can  do  it  with  honour,  if  I  should  starve. 
You  are  not  to  understand  by  this  that  I  expected  to  succeed 
Lord  Albemarle.  I  knew  that  was  impossible,  and  I  had  no 
right  to  ask  it ;  but,  however  I  am  not  at  all  pleased  with  what 
has  happened  ;  and  yet,  I  have  no  objection  to  Col.  Honey  wood ; 
which  will  make  it  perhaps  more  mysterious. 

I  am  going  to  Portsmouth,  to  see  the  fleet,  and  to  see  how 
their  anchors  hold  in  a  haven ;  for  the  wind  rages  most 
violently.  I  think  they  should  put  us  on  board,  instead  of  the 
300  recruits  that  are  ordered  under  the  name  of  a  Regiment  of 
Foot.  You  need  not  take  notice  to  anybody  of  what  is  said  on 
the  other  side.     I  wish  you  health  and  all  manner  of  good. 

I  am  Dear  Sir,  etc.. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester,  Apr.  15th,  1755. 

Dear  Madam,  .  .  .  Little  Romp  is  come  up,  and  pretty 
creature  she  is.  If  you  would  have  me  keep  her  in  preference 
to  FluiTy,  I  can  do  it,  and  you  may  have  her  again  when  you 
get  rid  of  the  rest,  which  shall  be  soon.  Capt.  Boisragon  was  so 
good  to  take  a  stock  for  a  pattern ;  it  is  hardly  broad  enough — 
but  as  the  buckle  is  narrow  I  must  be  satisfied,  till  I  can  get  a 
new  one.  .  .  . 

We  are  soon  to  be  reviewed,  and  afterwards  I  may  have  a 
foi-tnight's  leave  to  wait  upon  you,  provided  we  don't  encamp 
immediately.  It  is  difficult  to  say,  whether  there  will  or  will 
not  be  a  war ;  the  French  will  determine  that,  as  they  please,  as 
it  suits  their  interest  or  convenience. 

If  you  arm  yourself  with  philosophy,  you  are  mistress  of  all 
events ;  I  have  a  natural  indolence  of  temper,  that  helps  me  in 
some  cases  ;  but  I  have  too  much  impatience  for  much  sharp  pain. 
Will  you  excuse  the  shortness  of  my  letter,  I  am  interrupted 
by  the  coming  in  of  Officers.  My  duty  to  my  Father.  I  wish 
you  both  well  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J:  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  have  been  at  Portsmouth,  or  should  have  answered 
your  letter  sooner. 


262     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF    WOLFE 

Wolfe  was  still  a  passionate  dog-lover,  and  his  letters  are  full 
of  reference  to  his  canine  friends. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester,  Saturday,  April  19M,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — Lord  Albermarle  has  desired  to  have  one  of 
Flurry's  puppies ;  I  have  told  him  to  take  his  choice,  and  that, 
which  he  pitches  upon  will  be  delivered  upon  demand  ;  I  am 
many  dogs  in  his  debt,  and  owe  him  this  return  ;  will  you  be 
pleased  to  give  orders  that  the  puppy  his  Lordship  demands 
may  be  delivered  to  his  servant 't  There  is  a  musket  belonging 
to  the  regiment  that  Goodman  should  have  called  for.  When- 
ever he  or  any  person  belonging  to  the  regiment  or  in  the 
regiment's  name  asks  for  that  firelock,  I  desire  it  may  be 
delivered  to  the  person. 

I  am  afraid  the  cook  gives  the  dogs  too  much  meat  ;  flesh  is 
a  very  dangerous  food  for  dogs,  and  spoils  their  noses.  While 
Ball  eats  his  dinner,  the  coachman,  or  one  of  the  servants  might 
lock  up  the  spaniels,  and  give  them  a  little  pot  liquor  and  bread, 
or  milk,  or  oatmeal  and  water  :  servants  think  that  a  dog  is 
never  well  fed,  unless  he  gets  scraps  of  salt  beef,  pork,  etc. — 
whereas  these  strong  victuals  are  certain  destruction,  and  they 
should  never  want  water.  I  know  you  like  these  poor  creatures, 
otherwise  I  would  not  venture  to  trouble  you  with  so  much  upon 
the  subject.  Sir  John  Mordaunt  reviews  our  regiment  next 
Wednesday — and  awhile  hence,  we  are  to  have  that  honour  done 
us  by  H.R.H.  the  Duke,  an  honour  that  every  regiment  in 
England  will  partake  of. 

I  hope  to  be  able  to  pay  you  a  short  visit  in  the  beginning 
of  May,  and  I  hope  to  find  you  both  in  such  a  state  of  health  as 
will  allow  you  to  enjoy  that  fine  season.  I  always  wish  you  well, 
and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

In  view  of  the   existence   of  war,  even  though  he  may  not 
participate,  Wolfe  is  very  restless. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Freefolk,  Ist  May,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — You  will  be  a  little  surprised  to  find  my 
letter  dated  from  hence,  and  you  will  be  apt  to  wonder  what  I 


STAY   AT    FREEFOLK  263 

am  doing  so  far  from  my  duty  and  from  my  quarters  ;  but  our 
review  is  over,  and  my  friend  Sir  John  did  me  the  honour  to 
invite  me  here  for  a  day.  He  sets  out  for  the  west  country  to- 
morrow; and  I  return  to  my  colours.  We  are  but  fourteen 
miles  from  Winchester.  Mr.  Honey  wood  has  consented  to  me 
being  ten  days  or  a  fortnight  at  liberty ;  which,  if  you'll  give 
leave,  shall  be  chiefly  passed  with  you ;  and,  as  I  have  some 
business  to  settle  in  London,  the  conveniency  of  water-carriage, 
or  my  own  horse,  will  facilitate  my  movements  from  Blackheath 
to  that  great  capital. 

I  intend  to  set  out  from  Winchester  on  Sunday  or  Monday 
next,  and  to  be  with  you  the  second  day.  I  have  been  obliged 
to  turn  away  one  of  my  servants,  and  have  taken  necessary 
measures  to  be  supplied  with  another.  If  a  groom  or  other 
domestic  should  enquire  for  me  at  Blackheath,  pray  let  him 
know  when  he  may  expect  to  see  me.  We  have  been  very  gay 
at  Winchester  till  more  serious  matters  call  for  our  closer  attend- 
ance, though  the  place  is  in  itself  dull  and  melancholy  enough, 
yet  five  or  six  and  twenty  young  military  men  are  calculated  to 
enliven  it.  Mr.  Guiguer  lives  within  six  miles  of  the  city,  in 
a  well  furnished  snug  little  house,  and  in  a  pretty  country.  I 
have  made  him  two  visits,  and  have  found  him  a  most  hospitable 
and  cheerful  landlord,  and  his  lady  a  very  agreeable  person. 
The  people  in  general,  both  of  Winchester  and  the  country 
round  about,  are  extremely  civil  and  obliging ;  and  but  for  the 
burthen  of  so  many  soldiers  upon  particular  houses,  we  should 
be  quite  happy  in  our  present  cantonments.  The  change  to 
Blackheath  will  be  to  me  (notwithstanding  these  advantages)  a 
very  desirable  one;  and  what  I  most  hope  for  is  to  find  you 
both  in  perfect  health  and  felicity.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father, 
and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Freefolkj  Thursday,  5  June,  1755. 
Dear  Sir, — If  I  had  not  rambled  from  place  to  place,  you 
should  have  heard  from  me  sooner.  I  owe  you  a  particular 
letter  of  thanks  for  relieving  me  out  of  trouble  and  distress, 
and  for  putting  me  in  a  state  of  more  comfort  and  ease 
for  the  time  to  come.  I  shall  not  take  up  much  of  your 
attention   by   long   and   tedious   acknowledgements,  but  I  am 


264     LIFE   AND   LETTEHS   OF   WOLFE 

glad  to  feel  myself  happy  by  your  means,  and  I  have  a  pleasure 
in  owning  it. 

Some  of  us  have  been  at  Stewart's  review,  and  were  well 
enough  entertained.  I  return  to-morrow  to  Winchester  ;  there 
I  shall  wait  Mr.  Honeywood's  coming,  and  then  retire  to  South- 
ampton, and  try  to  wash  away  the  scurvy  with  salt  water. 

The  affairs  of  my  family  are  a  little  disordered  by  John's 
misfortunes ;  he  is  so  confoundedly  ill  that  I  was  forced  to  put 
him  in  our  regimental  hospital,  that  he  might  not  drop  to 
pieces — by  good  luck  I  found  a  fellow  of  character  to  serve  me 
during  his  illness. 

The  Duke  reviews  the  Inniskilling  Dragoons  to-morrow  ;  and 
next  week  Stewart's  and,  they  say,  Skelton's  ;  yours  and  ours  are 
not  yet  talked  of 

Sir  J.  Mordaunt  desires  his  compliments  to  you,  and  to  my 
mother.     I  wish  you  both  all  satisfaction,  and  am,  dear  Sir, 
Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester,  June  12th,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — I  have  heard  of  a  pacing  horse,  that  a  lady 
sold  to  a  farmer,  because  it  paced — the  creature  is  said  to  be 
quiet,  and  sound  and  good  humoured.  Have  you  any  objection 
to  a  pacing  horse  ?  because  I  am  to  see  him  next  week,  and  if  he 
is  well  and  I  like  him — I  shall  buy  him  for  you  and  send  him  up. 
If  this  does  not  do,  further  enquiry  shall  be  made,  and  I  won't 
rest  till  you  are  properly  mounted. 

The  shortness  of  my  letter  is  a  proof  that  I  am  in  the  middle 
of  business.  I  wish  you  both  well,  and  with  my  duty  to  my 
father,  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester,  June  1766. 

Dear  Madam, — My  first  business  here,  was  to  enquire  about 
your  horse,  which  unluckily  turns  out  to  be  a  mare,  and  broken 
winded :  if,  with  these  disadvantages,  you  would  choose  to  have 
her,  she  shall  be  sent  immediately  to  London  by  the  carrier :  but, 
as  I  suppose  she  will  not  be  fit  for  your  purpose,  I  shall  use  my 
best  endeavours    to  get   one   that    will.     Guiguer,  and   other 


•   THOUGHTS    ON    WAR  265 

acquaintances  may  help  me  out.  I  intend  to  write  to  my  father 
in  a  very  short  time  ;  and  am  now  going  to  Southampton  to 
regulate  the  affairs  of  my  Company  and  of  the  Detachment.  I 
return  from  thence  to  Winchester  again  on  my  way  to  Reading, 
where  Stewart's  Regt.  is  to  be  reviewed  by  Sir  J.  Mordaunt 
on  Tuesday  next :  I  met  him  by  accident  at  Staines,  and  he 
summoned  me  to  attend  him  at  this  famous  review. 

I  am  to  be  two  days  at  Freefolk,  and  come  back  with  Sir 
John,  who  is  going  to  his  new  house  near  Southampton.  Col. 
Honeyvvood's  brother  is  very  near  his  end,  the  Col.,  I  suppose, 
will  try  to  see  him  before  he  dies,  he  is  now  at  Bath. 

We  shall  execute  a  deserter  next  week,  which  though  a  neces- 
sary sight  is  yet  a  very  dismal  one.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father 
and  am,  dear  IVIadam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  evils  which  Englishmen  then  apprehended  fi'om  war  is 
well  brought  home  to  us  in  the  following. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester,  20th  June,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — I  do  not  know  what  news  may  be  stimng  in 
the  great  world,  but  we  have  none  that  is  bad.  Our  fleet  is  now 
more  formidable  than  the  fleet  of  England  ever  was,  and  as  the 
regiments  are  growing  every  day  more  and  more  complete,  I 
don't  apprehend  that  there  is  the  least  shadow  of  danger  to  the 
island  this  campaign. 

What  I  most  apprehend,  and  what "  is  very  well  worth  our 
thoughts,  is  the  excessive  expense  that  a  war  creates  to  the 
English  nation.  This  expense  has  already  involved  us  so  deep 
in  debt  that  we  have  not  much  more  credit,  and  consequently 
must  give  up  the  funds.  Bank,  etc.,  whenever  the  means  of 
raising  fresh  supplies  fail.  This  consideration  should  determine 
every  thinking  man  (when  war  is  declared)  to  divide  at  least  his 
substance  and  take  the  first  favourable  opportunity  to  secure 
something  upon  land,  for  his  family  in  case  the  other  portion 
should  be  lost  in  the  public  ruin.  It  is  no  doubt  a  little 
troublesome  to  begin  late  in  life  to  manage  estates,  especially 
great  ones,  but  a  small  matter  by  way  of  security  of  two  or  three 
hundred  pounds  a  year,  is  not,  nor  can  be,  very  inconvenient, 
and  I  think  I  could,  with  the  help  of  friends,  find  out  a  purchase 


266     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

of  that  sort,  that  would  be  no  burthen.  I  do  heartily  advise 
this  measure  for  your  particular  safety.  My  father^s  regiment  is 
certainty  for  him,  and  my  trade  will  always  subsist  me  in  exigen- 
cies, and  (sad  it  is  to  confess  it)  rather  mends  by  the  distress  of 
others,  than  falls  oiF.  A  war  is  of  most  uncertain  conclusion, 
and  the  demands  of  money  prodigious  while  it  lasts.  All  private 
accounts  should  be  cleared,  and  we  should  not  become  responsible 
for  other  men's  affairs,  when  our  own  are  so  precarious. 

I  have  been  here  since  Monday  at  the  races,  where  there  never 
was  less  sport  in  the  horse  way,  but  that  defect  is  a  good  deal 
made  amends  for  by  the  vivacity  of  the  other  entertainments, 
which  the  people  here,  and  I  suppose  everywhere  give  into,  as 
if  no  danger  hung  over  us,  nor  no  war  was  to  be  feared. 

I  have  danced  incessantly,  and  mend  upon  it,  which  will  en- 
courage me  to  be  more  the  servant  of  the  sex  upon  these  occasions 
than  I  have  hitherto  been. 

I  would  have  ycu  persevere  in  riding,  as  the  most  salutary  of 
all  exercises,  and  the  very  best  of  all  remedies  for  ill  health. 
Have  you  two  horses  ?  How  are  you  provided  ?  for  there  is  a 
growth  of  little  cattle  here  that  might  produce  something  to  fit 
you.     I  have  countermanded  the  pacing  horse. 

I  am  going  once  more  to  Portsmouth  to  enjoy  the  dreadful 
though  pleasing  sight  of  our  mighty  navy.  The  Marines  are  in 
full  exercise  to  be  ready  to  go  on  board,  and  relieve  the  regiments 
of  Foot  now  at  Spithead. 

My  duty  to  my  father  ;  you  have  both  my  best  wishes  and 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

On  the  whole  he  was  having  a  pleasant  and  entertaining 
holiday. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Winchester,  2Qth  June,  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — I  can't  get  my  Colonel  back  to  his  Quarters,  and 
therefore  can't  reside,  as  I  should  wish  to  do  (for  rooting  out  the 
scurvy),  at  Southampton.  I  have  tried  the  Water  and  the  Bath 
by  way  of  experiment,  and  find  that  they  entirely  answer  my 
expectations,  but  I  am  not  able  to  persevere  regularly  in  the  use 
of  'em. 

I  have  been  at  Portsmouth  lately,  and  shall  go  there  again 
to-morrow.     The  Duke  is  expected  :  and  the  show  will  be  most 


AFFAIRS    IN    INDIA  267 

magnificent ;  it  is  one  of  those  military  scenes  that  should  not  be 
neglected.  I  hope  H.R.H.  will  not  be  displeased  with  two  or 
three  of  us  for  leaving  our  quarters  upon  such  an  extraordinary 
occasion. 

Guiguer  invited  me  to  dinner  last  Thursday ;  and  I  engaged  to 
go,  if  it  was  in  my  power  ;  but  business  carried  me  far  away — I 
hear  he  waited  dinner  for  me,  which  I  am  grieved  at ;  may  I 
desire  the  favour  of  you  to  make  an  apology  for  me,  if  you  see  him, 
as  probably  you  will.  I  would  not  offend  him  for  any  considera- 
tion, as  he  has  treated  me  with  the  utmost  civility  and  kindness. 

I  have  some  letters  from  Braddock^s  army,  giving  a  very 
favourable  account  of  the  GeneraFs  proceedings,  and  of  his 
good  behavioui*  to  the  People  under  his  command ;  this  gives  me 
high  hopes  of  his  success,  if  Baron  Dieskau  does  not  arrive  in 
time,  with  his  succours,  to  stop  the  progress  of  our  Arms. 

Our  affairs  in  the  East  Indies  are  upon  the  decline.  At  the 
expiration  of  the  truce  for  three  months,  it  is  supposed  that 
hostilities  will  be  renewed  with  as  much  violence  as  ever.  Our 
military  concerns  are  under  the  guidance  of  a  very  poor  insigni- 
ficant officer,  and  the  death  of  Scott  (confirmed  in  these  last 
accounts)  is  an  irreparable  damage  to  the  Indian  Army. 

Bockland's  regiment  is  to  disembark  soon.  Eight  hundred 
Marines  are  ordered  to  relieve  them,  500  from  Portsmouth  and 
300  from  Chatham. 

There  are  seven  or  eight  and  twenty  great  ships  at  Spithead, 
fully  mann''d  with  very  able  seamen.  I  suppose  they  wait  for  news 
from  America,  before  they  fall  on,  and  destroy  the  French  fleets. 
In  the  meanwhile  they  eat  and  drink  very  comfortably,  and 
entertain  their  Friends  in  a  very  splendid  and  sumptuous  manner. 
I  wish  you  both  all  good  things,  etc.. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Winchester,  5  July,  1765. 
Dear  Sir, — Happily  I  had  not  heard  a  word  of  my  mother^s 
illness  till  she  was  much  recovered.  There  is  nothing  more  really 
afflicting  to  me  than  any  bad  account  of  her  health  or  your's.  I 
wish  she  would,  when  she  is  able,  persevere  in  riding,  because  I 
am  persuaded  that  exercise  must  relieve  her.  Sir  John  Mordaunt 
commends  the  waters  at  Buxton  as  sovereign  for  rheumatic 
pains.  Why  should  she  not  try  everything  that  can  give  her  any 
hope,  for  what  is  there  valuable  in  life  without  health  ? 


268    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

I  was  at  Portsmouth  when  your  letter  came  to  Quarters,  or 
should  sooner  have  expressed  to  you  the  thanks  that  are  due  for 
so  many  marks  of  your  kindness.  I  told  you  some  time  ago,  and 
I  repeat  it  now,  that  I  would  accept  of  no  preferment  or  advance- 
ment in  the  military  way,  that  should  be  attended  with  the  least 
risk  to  you,  or  my  mother. 

There  is  a  description  in  the  newspaper  of  the  magnificent 
military  scene  that  was  exhibited  at  Portsmouth  to  do  honour  to 
the  Duke,  who  had  great  reason  to  be  pleased  with  his  reception, 
and  was  I  believe,  highly  entertained,  if  one  may  judge  by  the 
looks  and  expressions  of  princes.  I  took  the  precaution  to  write 
to  Lord  Albemarle  to  know  whether  it  would  be  agreeable  to 
H.R.H.  that  any  of  us  should  be  there,  and  his  Lordship's 
answer  was  quite  favourable.  And  indeed  the  Duke's  civilities  to 
me  were  sufficient  proofs,  that  he  did  not  dislike  our  coming. 
After  the  Duke  left  Portsmouth,  Lord  Anson  gave  a  great  dinner 
to  all  the  sea  officers  to  which  he  did  me  the  honour  to  invite 
me  and  showed  me  all  sort  of  politeness  on  board  the  "  Prince." 
Governor  Hanley  was  at  his  post  to  receive  the  Duke,  and  seems 
to  have  as  much  vivacity  and  spirit  as  at  any  time  of  his  life  that 
I  have  any  recollection  of.  As  the  regt.  is  to  be  reviewed  by  the 
Duke  towards  the  latter  end  of  August,  Mr.  Honeywood  has 
thought  it  consistent  with  his  duty  to  be  a  little  with  his  regt. 
before  the  review.  We  expect  him  in  about  a  week  to  reside, 
and  therefore  I  go  to-morrow  back  to  Southampton,  to  fix  my 
quarters  there. 

I  am  in  the  neighbourhood  of  my  aunt,  Mrs.  Burcher  and 
would  wait  upon  her,  if  I  knew  where  she  lived.  The  next  letter 
that  I  receive  from  Blackheath,  will,  I  hope,  direct  me  in  this 
particular,  and  give  me  the  satisfaction  to  know  at  the  same  time 
that  all  is  well  there. 

I  beg  my  duty  to  my  mother  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

Mrs.  Wolfe,  who  had  long  been  ailing,  now  wrote  him  of 
her  recovery. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Soutliampton,  Sunday  Ibth  July,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — I  must  write  you  a  short  letter  (but  a  very 
sincere  one)  of  congratulation  upon  the  return  of  your  health,  or 


CHRISTIAN    PHILOSOPHY  269 

rather  I  fear,  upon  the  present  removal  of  your  pains.  Would 
to  God  that  what  you  have  felt  was  to  be  the  last  of  your  suffer- 
ings, and  that  a  future  life  of  peace  and  ease  was  to  make  you 
some  amends  for  the  many  unpleasant  hours  that  are  gone  by. 
My  wishes  for  you  are  truly  those  of  a  son  for  a  mother  whom 
he  has  always  found  kind  and  indulgent ;  for  I  conclude  such 
mothers  cannot  have  sons  that  wish  them  otherwise  than  well. 
My  duty  to  my  father, 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  affectionate  and  obedient  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Lymington,  l^th  July,  1755. 
Dear  Madam, — I  wish  I  could  say  anything  that  could 
comfort  you  or  advise  anything  that  would  do  you  good.  By 
gentle  exercise  and  care  of  yourself  I  hope  your  strength  will 
return,  and  with  that  your  spirits.  I  have  gratitude  and  tender- 
ness enough  to  be  greatly  affected  at  your  distress,  and  though 
grief  is  not  to  be  sought  after,  yet  I  would  not  for  the  world  but 
partake  of  all  your  misfortunes.  Would  to  God  that  the  little 
moment  that  is  allowed  us  in  this  life  had  some  ease  and  peace 
in  it,  or  that  we  had  firmness  enough  to  overcome  our  ills.  I 
know  you  would  be  content  with  a  little  share  of  health,  and  for 
my  part,  I  have  nothing  to  ask  but  just  as  much  resolution  as 
fits  a  soldier.  For  riches,  honours,  possessions,  and  the  dazzling 
advantages  of  this  world,  I  disregard  them  ;  my  utmost  desire 
and  ambition  is  to  look  steadily  upon  danger,  and  the  greatest 
happiness  that  I  wish  for  here  is  to  see  you  happy.  Resignation 
to  the  will  and  disposition  of  Heaven  is  so  consistent  with  piety, 
charity,  and  a  good  mind,  that  I  doubt  not  your  thorough 
resignation.  Don't  let  a  thought  about  me  disturb  you.  You 
have  done  more  than  I  am  afraid  I  deserve.  I  lament  that  ever 
I  gave  you  a  moment  of  uneasiness,  though,  I  think,  I  did  not 
mean  it,  and  of  that  I  hope  you  will  be  convinced.  I  wish  you 
better  health  with  great  sincerity,  and  beg  my  duty  to  my  father. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  Captain  Rickson. 

LymingtODj  l^th  July,  1755. 
My    dear   Friend, — If  I  had  not  been  well  convinced  by 
your  letter  that  you  needed  not  my  counsel  to  guide  you,  and 


270    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

that  the  steps  you  were  taking  were  prudent  and  sensible  beyond 
what  I  could  advise,  you  should  have  heard  from  me  something 
sooner  ;  for  the  public  service,  and  your  honour  and  well-doing, 
are  matters  of  high  concern  to  me.  I  am  sorry  that  I  cannot 
take  to  myself  the  merit  of  having  served  you  upon  this  occasion. 

1  would  have  done  it  if  it  had  been  in  my  power ;  but  I  knew 
nothing  of  your  new  employment  till  Calcraft  mentioned  it  to 
me.^  You  are,  I  believe,  so  well  in  the  Duke's  opinion,  that  Mr. 
Fox  had  no  difficulty  to  place  you  where  you  are,  and  where,  I 
am  fully  persuaded^  you  will  acquit  yourself  handsomely.  To 
study  the  character  of  your  General,  to  conform  to  it,  and  by 
that  means  to  gain  his  esteem  and  confidence,  are  such  judicious 
measures  that  they  cannot  fail  of  good  effects.  If  I  am  not 
mistaken  Lord  George  ^  is  a  very  even-tempered  man,  and  one 
that  will  hearken  to  a  reasonable  proposal. 

If  the  French  resent  the  affi:ont  put  upon  them  by  Mr. 
Boscawen,^  the  war  will  come  on  hot  and  sudden ;  and  they  will 
certainly  have  an  eye  to  the  Highlands.  Their  friends  and  allies 
in  that  country  were  of  great  use  to  them  in  the  last  war.  That 
famous  diversion  cost  us  great  sums  of  money  and  many  lives, 
and  left  the  Pays  Bas  to  Saxe's  mercy.  I  am  much  of  your 
opinion,  that,  without  a  considerable  aid  of  foreign  troops,  the 
Highlanders  will  never  stir.  I  believe  their  resentments  are 
strong,  and  the  spirits  of  revenge  prevalent  amongst  them ;  but 
the  risk  is  too  great  without  help ;  however,  we  ought  to  be  cautious 
and  vigilant.  We  ought  to  have  good  store  of  meal  in  the  forts  to 
feed  the  troops  in  the  winter,  in  case  they  be  wanted ;  plenty  of 
intrenching  tools  and  hatchets,  for  making  redoubts  and  cutting 
palisades,  etc. ;  and  we  should  be  cautious  not  to  expose  the 
troops  in  small  parties,  dispersed  through  the  Highlands, 
where  there  is  least  apprehension  of  a  commotion.  A  few  well- 
chosen  posts  in  the  middle  of  those  clans  that  are  the  likeliest 

^  John  Calcraft^  originally  a  War  Office  clerk,  was  taken  up  by  Henry 
Fox  and  became  immensely  rich  as  an  army  agent.  Afterwards  he  went  over  to 
Pitt,  in  whose  confidence  he  continued  for  years.  Calcraft,  although  attacked 
by  ^'^  Junius  "  for  corrupt  practices,  is  yet  believed  to  have  known  the  identity  of 
that  writer.  When  he  died,  in  1772,  worth  more  than  a  quarter  of  a  million, 
he  left  £1000  to  Sir  Philip  Francis  and  an  annuity  of  £200  to  Lady  Francis  :  a 
significant  circumstance. 

2  Major-General  Lord  George  Beauclerk,  sixth  son  of  the  first  Duke  of 
St.  Albans,  and  Colonel  of  the  19th  Regiment.     He  died  in  1768. 

3  This  "affront"  was  the  capture  of  two  French  ships,  the  Alcide  and 
the  LySj  off  Cape  Breton,  carrying  the  Governor  of  Louisbourg,  and  four  other 
officers.  All  were  made  prisoners  and  treasure  to  the  value  of  £30,000  sterling 
taken. 


HAWKE    AND    BYNG  271 

to  rebel,  with  a  force  sufficient  to  entrench  and  defend  themselves, 
and  with  positive  orders  never  to  surrender  to  the  Highlands 
(though  never  so  numerous),  but  either  to  resist  in  their  posts 
till  relieved,  or  force  their  way  through  to  the  forts,  would,  I 
think,  have  lively  effects.  A  hundred  soldiers,  in  my  mind,  are 
an  overmatch  for  five  hundred  of  your  Highland  militia ;  and 
when  they  are  told  so  in  a  proper  way,  they  believe  it  them- 
selves. It  will  be  your  business  to  know  the  exact  strength  of 
the  rebel  clans,  and  to  inquire  into  the  abilities  of  their  leaders, 
especially  of  those  that  are  abroad.  There  are  people  that  can 
inform  you.  There  ought  to  be  an  engineer  at  the  forts  to 
inform  the  General  of  what  will  be  wanted  for  their  defence, 
and  to  give  directions  for  the  construction  of  small  redoubts, 
where  the  General  pleases  to  order  them. 

Nobody  can  say  what  is  to  become  of  us  yet.  If  troops  are 
sent  to  Holland,  we  expect  to  be  amongst  the  first.  We  are 
quartered  at  Winchester  and  Southampton,  but  turned  out  for 
the  assizes.  The  fleet  at  Spithead  expects  orders  to  sail  every 
hour.  They  are  commanded  by  Sir  E.  Hawke,  who  has  the 
Admirals  Byng  and  West  to  assist  him.  There  are  about  thirty 
great  ships,  and  some  frigates  ;  the  finest  fleet,  I  believe,  that  this 
nation  ever  put  to  sea,  and  excellently  well  manned.  The 
marines  embarked  yesterday,  to  the  number,  I  suppose,  of  about 
1000  men;  others  will  be  taken  up  at  Plymouth,  if  they  are 
wanted. 

I  lodged  with  a  Mrs.  Grant,^  whom  perhaps  you  know.  She 
was  very  careful  of  me,  and  very  obliging.  If  you  see  her,  it 
will  be  doing  me  a  pleasure  if  you  will  say  that  I  remember  it. 
Do  you  know  Mrs.  Forbes,  of  Culloden  ?  I  have  a  particular 
respect  and  esteem  for  that  lady.  She  showed  me  a  good  deal 
of  civility  while  I  lay  in  the  North.  If  you  are  acquainted, 
pray  make  my  best  compliments  to  her,  and  let  me  know  how 
she  is  as  to  her  health.  Au  reste,  you  must  be  so  kind  to  write 
now  and  then,  and  I  will  be  punctual  to  answer,  and  give 
any  intelligence  of  what  is  doing  where  I  happen  to  be.  A 
letter,  directed  to  me  at  General  Wolfe's,  at  Blackheath,  Kent, 
will  be  forwarded  to  the  remotest  regions.  I  am,  my  dear 
friend, 

Your  affectionate  and  faithful  servant, 

James  Wolfe. 

*  At  Inverness  in  1751. 


272    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Southampton,  Aug.  7,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — If  Mr.  Warde  has  any  secret  that  can 
relieve  you  I  shall  revere  his  art,  and  esteem  his  person,^  but  if 
his  remedies  should  not  be  so  successful  as  I  wish  I  would  have 
you  persuade  the  General  to  go  with  you  to  Buxton  next  year — 
in  the  meanwhile,  as  the  Bath  water  is  a  present  relief,  why 
should  you  not  have  recourse  to  it  for  two  months  in  the  winter  ? 
Horses  for  ladies  are  extremely  difficult  to  find.  The  little 
forest  horses  are  wild  and  shy,  and  I  am  unwilling  to  purchase 
and  recommend  a  creature  of  this  sort  either  for  Mrs.  Cade  or 
you :  if  I  hear  of  any  that  may  be  trusted,  that  are  well  known, 

1  shall  try  to  get  possession  of  **em,  and  will  send  'em  up. 

I  want  to  change  your  little  favourite  for  Flurry — because  I 
think  you  will  be  better  pleased  with  this,  and  the  other  will  be 
more  useful  to  me. 

I  am  obliged  to  finish  my  letter  now — being  interrupted,  I 
heartily  wish  you  better  health  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
PS. — My  duty  to  my  father. 

To  Mrs.  Wolpk, 
Blackheath. 

At  Lyndhurst  in  the  New  Forest,  near  Southampton,  in  a 
somewhat  secluded  abode,  dwelt  his  father''s  sister  Anne,  who  had 
married  James  Burcher,^  formerly  possessed  of  a  good  fortune, 
but  in  his  declining  years  become  somewhat  impoverished.  The 
nephew  thus  describes  his  visit. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Southampton,  lUh  August,  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — I  paid  my  respects  to  Mrs.  Burcher  a  few  days 

since,  and   found  a  very  surprising   old   gentlewoman.     I    was 

struck  with  the  resemblance  between  my  uncle  Wat  and  her. 

She  has  not  only  all  his  features,  but  his  manner  and  way  of 

^  Major  Warde  had  offered  to  give  Mrs.  Wolfe  an  infallible  remedy  for 
gout. 

2  William  Burcher,  the  son,  survived  until  1792,  and  is  buried  in  Lymiug- 
ton  churchyard,  leaving  a  son,  Edward  Wolfe  Burcher.  His  daughter  married 
John  Ayl ward,  Esq.,  from  whom  is  descended  Mr.  Alexander  Wolfe- Ayl ward, 
well  known  for  his  interest  in  all  that  pertains  to  General  Wolfe  and  the 
owner  of  several  relics  of  interest  bequeathed  to  his  ancestor  by  Mrs.  Wolfe. 


MRS.    BUllCHER    (ANNE   WOLFE) 
From  a  miniature  in  the  possession  of  her  descendant,  A.  Wolfe- Ayhcard,  Esq. 


HIS   AUNT   BURCHER  273 

talking,  and  his  gestures.  She  has  a  healthy  florid  look,  though 
a  little  paralytic,  and  is  full  of  grievous  complaints.  Mr. 
Burcher  has  the  appearance  of  civility  and  good-breeding.  They 
live  in  a  lonely  miserable  mansion  in  the  forest,  and  all  about 
has  the  look  of  indigence  and  decay.  The  poor  gentlewoman 
expressed  herself  in  very  grateful  manner  for  the  kindness  and 
support  that  she  has  received  from  you,  and  seemed  a  good  deal 
affected  at  the  sight  of  me.  You  may  believe  I  did  not  stay 
long  there ;  but  I  have  promised  to  see  her  again  before  we 
leave  this  place,  if  our  march  is  not  too  sudden. 

I  find  that  some  of  the  troops  in  our  neighbourhood  are  in 
motion  towards  the  capital;  whether  we  shall  follow  or  march 
elsewhere  is  to  us  unknown,  but  my  private  sentiments  are  that 
we  shaVt  long  lie  idle.  You  are  nearer  to  the  fountain  of 
intelligence  than  we  are,  but  I  believe  you  take  as  little  pains  to 
be  informed  as  your  son.  I  don't  think  there  are  two  men  in  the 
kingdom  who  are  at  less  trouble  on  that  score.  I  hope  my 
mother  continues  to  mend.  Mrs.  Burcher  sent  you  a  buck  last 
week,  which  she  hopes  you  received  in  good  order. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Southampton^  27  Aug.,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — Though  I  hear  some  unpleasant  tidings  what 
grieves  me  most,  that  you  recover  but  very  slowly;  that  you 
recover  at  all  is  some  comfort ;  if  your  strength  and  health 
return  as  I  wish  it,  you  would  soon  be  well.  I  am  afraid  it  is 
worse  with  you  than  I  am  told,  because  of  late  you  have  not 
been  able  to  write  to  me.  I  am  sure  you  would  now  and  then 
give  me  that  satisfaction,  if  it  was  in  your  power.  In  other 
circumstances  and  at  another  time,  I  would  be  with  you — 
but  we  may  move  suddenly  as  others  have  done :  and  it  may 
perhaps  be  our  lot  to  come  nearer  to  you  in  the  course  of 
duty. 

I  have  heard  of  a  gentlewoman's  horse  to  be  sold.  He  is 
broken-winded,  but  that  is  of  little  consequence  to  one  who 
rides  but  moderately.  Shall  I  buy  him  and  send  him  up  for 
you  or  Mrs.  Cade  ?  I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father ;  I  pray  that 
all  sort  of  good  may  attend  you  both  and  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

T 


274     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

To  HIS  Father. 

Soutliampton,  Uh  September,  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — The  accounts  of  Mr.  Braddock's  defeat  ^  are  not 
yet  clear  enough  to  form  a  right  judgment  of  the  cause  of  it ; 
but  I  do  myself  believe  that  the  cowardice  and  ill-behaviour  of 
the  men  far  exceeded  the  ignorance  of  the  chief,  who  though  not 
a  master  of  the  difficult  art  of  war,  was  yet  a  man  of  sense  and 
courage.  I  have  but  a  very  mean  opinion  of  the  Infantry  in 
courage.  I  know  their  discipline  to  be  bad,  and  their  valour 
precarious.  They  are  easily  put  into  disorder,  and  hard  to 
recover  out  of  it.  They  frequently  kill  their  officers  through  fear, 
and  murder  one  another  in  their  confusion.  Their  shameful 
behaviour  in  Scotland,  at  Port  L'Orient,  at  Melle,  and  upon  many 
less  important  occasions,  clearly  denoted  the  extreme  ignorance 
of  the  officers,  and  the  disobedient  and  dastardly  spirit  of  the  men. 

Was   there  ever  such  a  slaughter  of  officers  as  upon  this 

expedition  ?  and  did  ever  the  Geneva  and  p of  this  country 

operate  more  shamefully  and  violently  upon  the  dirty  inhabitants 
of  it  under  the  denomination  of  soldiers  ?  I  am  sorry  to  say 
that  our  method  of  training  and  instructing  the  troops  is 
extremely  defective,  and  tends  to  no  good  end.  We  are  lazy 
in  time  of  peace,  and  of  course  want  vigilance  and  activity 
in  war.  Our  military  education  is  by  far  the  worst  in  Europe, 
and  all  our  concerns  are  treated  with  contempt  or  totally 
neglected.  It  will  cost  us  very  dear  some  time  hence.  I  hope 
the  day  is  at  a  distance,  but  I  am  afraid  it  will  come.^ 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Southampton,  21  Sept.,  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — Mrs.  Abthorp''s  death  may  be  reckoned  rather 
fortunate  than  otherwise,  since  it  was  hardly  probable  that  she 

1  Braddock  was  a  blustering,  peppery  officer  of  the  Hawley  type,  who  was 
sent  out  to  drive  the  French  back  across  the  Canadian  border.  He  was 
totally  ignorant  of  American  warfare  and  frontier  conditions.  He  took 
1000  British  troops  and  1200  Virginian  militia  into  the  heart  of  the  wilderness, 
fell  into  an  Indian  ambush,  and  was  overtaken  by  crushing  disaster  and  killed 
together  with  no  fewer  than  sixty  other  officers.  The  infantry,  in  a  panic, 
abandoned  arms,  baggage  and  artillery. 

2  Dr-  Johnson  observed  as  late  as  1773  that  ''  it  is  wonderful  how  very 
ignorant  many  officers  of  the  army  are  considering  how  much  leisure  they 
have  for  study  and  the  acquisition  of  knowledge."  He  maintained  that  many 
of  them  were  ignorant  of  things  belonging  immediately  to  their  own  profession. 
"  For  instance,  many  cannot  tell  how  far  a  musket  will  carry  a  bullet." 


HIS   RED    HAIR  275 

would  ever  recover  from  the  melancholy  state  she  was  in,  or  that 
her  natural  disposition  would  correct  with  her  returning  judge- 
ment if  she  did  recover.^ 

Two  or  three  of  us  went  to  shoot  in  the  neighbourhood 
of  Winchester,  and  killed  some  game,  part  of  which  Capt. 
Maxwell  has  undertaken  to  send  to  Blackheath ;  there  are 
two  cock  pheasants,  that  I  think  will  please  you,  if  they  get 
safe  and  sound — but  it  must  not  be  told  where  they  came 
from. 

Sir  John  Mordaunt  went  to  London  on  Thursday  to  pay 
his  duty  and  make  his  reports  to  his  Majesty,  and  that  day  I 
left  Freefolk. 

A  French  ship  from  Rochelle  came  into  the  harbour  at 
Portsmouth,  without  knowing  that  there  were  any  hostilities 
between  the  two  nations  ;  she  will  furnish  matter  for  a  dispute 
between  the  Governor  of  Portsmouth  and  the  Naval  Commander 
in  the  harbour.  I  am  exceedingly  pleased  to  hear  the  further 
success  of  Mr.  Wardens  medicine  and  hope  it  will  have  all 
possible  good  effects.  My  duty  to  my  mother  and  constant 
wishes  for  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  you  both,  I  am,  dear 
Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


From  his  next  letter  we  may  fix  the  date  of  Wolfe's  temporary 
abandonment  of  his  white  military  wig  in  favour  of  the  hirsute 
adornment  with  which  nature  had  furnished  him.  He  had 
inherited  his  red  hair  from  his  father,  both  of  whom  were  probably 
unaware  of  the  association  of  hair  of  that  colour  with  genius  with 
which  the  researches  of  anthropologists  have  made  us  in  later  days 
so  familiar.  The  practice  of  wearing  wigs,  not  perhaps  so  universal 
as  is  supposed  (there  are  notable  exceptions)  made  natural  hair, 
especially  when  short,  almost  as  much  of  a  novelty  in  a  man  of 
fashion  as  a  beard.  But  some  even  then  advocated  the  abolition 
of  wigs  on  hygienic  grounds.  Their  disuse  was  certainly  a  con- 
venience in  the  country.  The  letter  also  once  more  evinces  the  son's 
earnest  solicitude  for  his  mother's  health. 

1  Mrs.  Abthorp  (Frances  Thompson)  became  a  fanatical  Methodist,  as  a 
result  of  Whitefield's  preaching,   adopting  the  most  extreme  doctrines   of 
that  sect.      Her  reason  afterwards  grew  affected,  and  she  had  to  be  placed 
under  restraint. 
T  2 


276     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Southampton,  28  September,  VJ56. 

Dear  Madam, — I  am  delighted  to  hear  that  your  sufferings 
are  in  some  degree  lessened ;  the  presence  of  your  friends  will 
become  every  day  more  and  more  agreeable  as  you  acquire 
strength  and  spirits  for  society.  How  happy  I  feel  myself  in 
your  recovery,  and  with  how  much  more  satisfaction  shall  I  see 
you  than  formerly,  when  I  almost  always  found  you  overloaded 
with  misery !  I  dare  say  you  were  always  convinced  of  my 
affection  for  you,  and  of  my  gratitude.  It  was  not  this 
melancholy  occasion  that  gave  birth  to  it,  though  perhaps  it 
brought  it  more  to  light.  I  am  fortunate  in  this  respect,  and 
my  nature  requires  some  extraordinary  events  to  produce  itself. 
I  want  that  attention  and  those  assiduous  cares  that  commonly 
go  along  with  good-nature  and  humanity.  In  the  common 
occurrences  of  life,  I  own  that  I  am  not  seen  to  advantage. 

You  must  take  care  of  cold  this  winter,  as  the  medicine  you 
have  used  is  of  very  powerful  operation,  and  leaves  a  weakness 
behind  it  that  requires  the  utmost  precautions.  When  you  are 
below  in  the  parlour,  the  hall-door  should  always  be  kept  close 
shut,  and  you  must  sit  upon  carpets.  There  are  many  fair  days 
in  October  that  will  invite  you  out,  and  you  should  neglect  none 
of  them.  Prefer  that  to  all  other  affairs  and  concerns  whatever. 
You  must  be  extremely  careful  of  what  rooms  you  go  to  play  at 
cards  in,  and  where  you  sit ;  and  beware  of  the  Assembly. 
Have  as  many  parties  at  your  own  house  as  possible,  and  go  little 
abroad. 

In  the  middle  of  winter,  if  you  stay  much  at  home,  I  will 
come  and  shut  myself  up  with  you  for  three  weeks  or  a  month, 
and  play  at  piquet  from  morning  till  night,  and  you  shall 
laugh  at  my  short  red  hair  as  much  as  you  please.  Fm  sure  you 
would  smile  now  if  you  saw  me  as  I  am  with  the  covering  that 
nature  has  given  me.  I  intend  to  devote  myself  this  winter  to 
my  profession,  and  shall  read  without  ceasing.  If  you  would 
have  me  with  you  for  a  short  while,  it  must  be  upon  the  condition 
that  I  never  stir  out  of  the  house  after  dinner.  With  that 
indulgence,  I  shall  engage  to  be  at  home  whenever  you  are  in 
the  evening.  My  mornings  are  always,  as  you  know,  divided 
between  exercise  and  study.  I  have  been  very  idle  all  this 
summer, — if  a  man  may  venture  to  say  so  who  has  given  up  much 
of  his  time  to  the  ladies.  If  there  is  to  be  war,  we  should  be 
prepared  for  it ;  if  not,  I  am  entirely  at  your  service.     I  go  back 


INVASION  EXPECTED  277 

tomorrow  to  Sir  J.  Mordaunfs  for  a  week,  after  that  I  shall 
take  up  my  residence  at  Winchester. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Wincliester_,  Sunday,  5  Oct.,  1755. 
Dear  Madam, — Here  is  a  pad  to  be  sold,  that  is  nimble, 
sure-footed,  and  very  gentle  ;  if  you,  or  Mrs.  Cade  would  choose 
to  have  the  horse,  I  shall  secui-e  him  for  yom-  use,  and  send  him 
to  you  by  the  first  favourable  occasion  ;  I  must  desire  to  have 
your  answer  soon,  because  the  owner  intends  to  part  with  his 
horse.  I  can  keep  him  here  till  the  spring  if  it  be  inconvenient 
to  have  him  home  in  the  winter.  I  would  fain  have  you  ride  if 
possible.  In  case  we  move  in  the  cold  season,  my  cloak  will  be 
a  necessary  covering,  and  thick  boots  a  proper  defence — Rymer 
has  directions  to  send  a  strong  pair  of  boots,  and  half  a  dozen 
pair  of  very  strong  shoes  to  Blackheath — the  cloak,  boots  and 
three  or  four  pair  of  shoes,  may  be  wanted,  but  I  wouldn't  have 
them  sent  till  further  notice.  I  left  Freefolk  the  day  before 
yesterday  to  meet  the  regiment  here — we  are  assembled,  to  be 
reviewed  next  week  by  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  and  afterwards,  I 
suppose  by  his  Royal  Highness  the  Duke ;  our  whole  military 
business  seems  to  be  confined  to  reviews.  I  hope  you  find 
yom-self  mending  and  growing  stronger  every  day  ;  great  enquiry 
was  made  after  you,  and  great  satisfaction  expressed  for  the 
relief  that  you  have  found.  I  wish  you  both  all  happiness  ;  I  beg 
my  duty  to  my  father  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Winchester,  19th  Oct.,  1755. 
Dear  Sir, — When  two  nations  have  arm'd  themselves  to  the 
highest  pitch  of  their  strength,  I  suppose  they  will  try  which  is 
strongest.  The  French  are  getting  their  fleet  into  order  and 
threaten  an  invasion;  we  equip  all  our  ships  and  increase  our 
Army  to  oppose  ""em.  We  have  begun  hostilities  both  in  Europe 
and  America :  in  these  circumstances  is  it  to  be  supposed  that  a 
war  with  such  a  nation  as  France  can  be  avoided  ?  I  think  it 
cannot.  In  this  situation  of  things,  give  me  leave  to  recommend 
some  precautions  to  you : — to  put  no  more  money  into  the  funds ; 


278     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF    WOLFE 

to  keep  as  much  as  possible  by  you,  in  case  of  exigencies ;  and 
above  all  things  to  secure  at  least  <£^100  a  year  in  land,  that, 
should  the  war  turn  out  to  our  disadvantage,  and  the  publick 
credit  sink,  my  mother  may  not  be  in  danger  of  starving. 

Whenever  you  can  sell  3  or  4  thousand  pounds  of  stock  upon 
tolerable  terms,  it  would  be  an  act  of  prudence  to  do  it ;  and 
tho'  you  shou'd  not  see  a  farthing  of  rent  from  a  small  landed 
estate,  during  the  war,  and  shou'd  lose  the  interest  of  the  money 
it  cost  you,  by  taking  it  out  of  the  funds — yet  it  is  a  wise 
measure  for  your  family  and  can  have  no  ill-consequence  with 
regard  to  yourself.  Excuse  the  liberty  I  have  taken ;  I  do  not 
consider  myself  as  anyhow  concern''d  in  it ;  but  I  cannot  but  be 
apprehensive  that  the  distractions  of  the  publick  credit  may  be 
the  consequence  of  an  unlucky  war,  that  of  course  all  those 
persons  whose  property  lies  in  the  funds,  must  be  ruined; 
amongst  the  rest  my  mother.  Your  rank  in  the  army  preserves 
you  from  any  danger  of  want,  and  my  employment  is  always 
bread ;  but  neither  may  outlive  the  struggle,  and  then  who  will 
help  the  poor  lady  ?  It  will  be  no  difficult  matter,  nor  a  very 
troublesome  undertaking  to  find  a  purchase  of  this  small  value, 
and  it  is  indifferent  when  you  find  it,  provided  only  the  right 
be  clear.  I  think  it  my  duty  to  recommend  this  step  in  the 
strongest  manner,  and  not  as  my  own  opinion  only,  but  as  the 
sentiments  of  much  more  knowing  persons,  and  particularly  of 
your  acquaintance.  Sir  J.  Mordaunt,  who  advised  me  to  mention 
it  to  you. 

I  wish  you  both  health,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

The  whole  country  rang  with  cries  of  invasion,  much  as  it  was 
to  ring  nearly  half  a  century  later  when  the  dreaded  "  Boney  "  was 
meditating  a  descent  upon  English  coasts. ^  Men  in  towns  and 
villages,  especially  in  the  south  of  England,  were  almost  in  a  panic. 
The  most  extravagant  calls  were  made  upon  the  public  spirit  of 
the  nation,  and  one  patriot  announced  that  he  would  thence- 
forward abstain  from  sugar  in  his  tea  in  order  to  devote  the 
cost  to  the  purchase  of  bullets  for  expulsion  into  French  carcases. 
Some  of  this  surely  is  reflected  in  Wolfe's  next  letter  to  his 
mother. 

^  It  was  about  this  time  that  Wolfe  issued  his  "Instructions  for  the 
Twentieth  Regiment  in  case  the  French  should  land^"  which  were  afterwards 
widely  circulated. 


'UGLY   TIMES   AT   HAND'  279 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Winchester,  Friday,  2Ath  Oct.,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — Before  you  receive  this  you  will  hear  that 
some  of  the  troops  are  in  motion  towards  the  coast :  if  they 
have  not  better  quarters,  they  will  be  nearer  to  business,  and  in 
readiness  to  defend  the  country.  I  am  something  at  a  loss  to 
conjecture  whether  this  is  a  real  or  a  political  invasion ;  however 
I  hope  it  will  end  well.  My  time  does  not  allow  me  to  enquire 
after  what  I  would  fain  have  you  secure  off,  nor  does  it  lye  much 
in  my  way.  The  lawyers  are  best  informed  of  these  points. 
I  should  think  that  Mr.  Fisher  might  hear  of  such  a  thing 
amongst  his  law  acquaintance.  Perhaps  Tim  Brett  might  help 
you,  if  you  were  to  employ  him  in  such  business.  Sir  J.  Mordaunt 
mentioned  a  very  complete  little  manor  of  about  c£200  a  year, 
which  must  soon  be  sold,  but  some  of  the  neighbours  have  an 
eye  to  that.  I  will  do  my  utmost  endeavour  to  find  out  some- 
thing or  other :  but  we  must  wait  till  this  cloud  is  dispersed 
before  we  think  of  selling  out  of  the  stocks,  which  at  a  time  like 
this  is  inconsistent  with  my  father's  honour. 

In  case  of  an  invasion,  I  imagine  my  father  will  think  it  his 
duty  to  be  at  the  head  of  his  regiment,  at  least  as  much  as  his 
strength  will  allow.  Should  matters  be  carried  far,  and  money 
be  wanted,  he  should  be  the  first  to  offer  his  plate  for  the  public 
service.  He  might  buy  a  post-chaise,  and  hire  horses  to  be  in 
readiness ;  and  if  ever  he  is  distressed  for  quarters,  he  may  be 
sure  of  mine,  or  my  field-bed  in  camp.  The  General  should 
show  himself  at  St.  James's  with  a  cheerful,  willing  countenance, 
that  the  King  may  see  how  good  a  servant  he  has,  and  how  well 
his  inclinations  lead  him  to  serve  the  good  old  monarch.  If  ever 
you  happen  to  be  distressed,  you  will  find  a  certain  support  in 
your  son.  Be  assured  that  you  will  know  me  best  when  you 
have  most  occasion  for  my  assistance  :  but  I  desire  no  such  proof 
of  my  disposition.  May  you  both  live  long  in  ease  and  peace  ; 
but  I  fear  there  are  ugly  times  at  hand.  Perhaps  we  may  not 
see  them. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  Nov.  5,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — ^The  enclosed  letter  is  from  Major  Donnellan 

to  the  General ;  I  have  luckily  got  an  old  frank  that  can  cover 

it.     You  sent  my  things  very  exactly  and  at  a  good  time — the 

streets  of  this  town  are  the  dirtiest  of  all  streets — no  leather  can 


280    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

resist  the  damps,  unless  doubly  fortified  sole  upon  sole.  It  was 
most  obliging  in  you  to  give  yourself  so  much  trouble  ;  the  letter 
you  sent  by  Maxwell  should  have  come  by  the  post ;  don't  regard 
the  expense,  it  is  sometimes  of  consequence  not  to  lose  a  day, 
and  if  you  have  not  franks  scratch  out,  and  write  Canterbury, 
because  we  men  of  business  need  dispatch.  We  have  two 
regiments  of  Foot,  and  a  regiment  of  dragoons,  a  crowd  of 
officers  and  soldiers.  General  Hawley  is  expected  in  a  few  days 
to  keep  us  all  in  order ;  if  there  is  an  invasion,  they  could  not 
make  use  of  a  more  unfit  person.  The  troops  dread  his  severity, 
hate  the  man,  and  hold  his  military  knowledge  in  contempt. 
I  wish  you  both  much  health.  My  duty  to  my  father. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

Wolfe  has  been  often  spoken  of  as  a  man  only  too  conscious  of 
his  merit.  In  truth  few  men  were  more  modest,  as  the  following 
evinces. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  Qth  November,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — ^The  officers  of  the  army  in  general  are 
persons  of  so  little  application  to  business  and  have  been  so  ill 
educated,  that  it  must  not  surprise  you  to  hear  that  a  man  of 
common  industry  is  in  reputation  amongst  them.  I  reckon  it 
a  very  great  misfortune  to  this  country  that  I,  your  son,  who 
have,  I  know,  but  a  very  modest  capacity,  and  some  degree  of 
diligence  a  little  above  the  ordinary  run,  should  be  thought,  as 
I  generally  am,  one  of  the  best  officers  of  my  rank  in  the  service. 
I  am  not  at  all  vain  of  the  distinction.  The  comparison  would 
do  a  man  of  genius  very  little  honour,  and  does  not  illustrate 
me,  by  any  means ;  and  the  consequence  will  be  very  fatal  to 
me  in  the  end,  for  as  I  rise  in  rank  people  will  expect  some 
considerable  performances,  and  I  shall  be  induced,  in  support  of 
an  ill-got  reputation,  to  be  lavish  of  my  life,  and  shall  probably 
meet  that  fate  which  is  the  ordinary  effect  of  such  conduct. 

You  have  made  yourself  believe  (perhaps  it  is  to  excuse  your 
indolence)  that  you  don*'t  write  well.  But  you  sha'n't  make  me 
believe  any  such  thing ;  or,  if  it  was  so,  which  is  not  really  the 
case,  you  should  remember  that  you  are  writing  to  your  son, 
who  is  your  friend,  knows  the  many  good  qualities  of  your  mind. 


CUMBERLAND'S   FAVOUR  281 

and  loves  you.  The  Duke  of  Marlborough  has  been  very  civil 
to  us  all,  and  very  particularly  so  to  me ;  he  goes  to  town 
to-morrow  for  a  short  stay.^  I  hope  the  French  have  not  some 
mischief  in  their  heads  ;  but  it  can't  reach  you.  If  the  General 
means  to  show  himself,  he  should  remember  my  former  scheme 
for  him.  I  have  made  some  inquiry  for  a  little  purchase  for 
you,  but  can't  hear  of  anything  fit  for  our  purpose ;  and  they 
are  particularly  high  in  their  demands  in  this  country,  because 
of  the  exclusive  privileges  of  a  man  of  Kent  who  is  a  freeholder.^ 
I  wish  it  had  been  thought  of  two  years  ago.  You  may  remember 
that  I  hinted  it,  and  foretold  that  a  war  was  not  far  oiF. 

The  letter  you  sent,  came,  as  you  guessed,  from  Goldsmith. 
I  writ  to  him  by  the  Duke's  directions  to  enquire  after  an 
officer's  widow  in  Ireland,  who,  he  was  told,  had  a  son  fit  to 
serve,  and  his  Royal  Highness,  who  is  for  ever  doing  noble  and 
generous  actions,  wanted  to  provide  for  that  child.  The  father 
was  killed  at  Fontenoy.  If  I  don't  keep  a  good  watch  on  myself 
I  must  be  a  little  vain,  for  the  Duke  has  of  late  given  me  such 
particular  marks  of  his  esteem  and  confidence  that  I  am  ashamed 
not  to  deserve  it  better.  We  expect  the  Duke  of  Richmond 
next  week,  and  Lord  Albemarle.  The  Earl  comes  to  introduce 
his  cousin  to  the  regiment,^  the  Duke  to  do  duty  at  quarters. 
That  young  man  will  make  a  considerable  figure  in  our  way, 
because  he  loves  it,  and  has  a  strong  understanding. 

His  father's  Lieutenant-Colonel  absented  himself  from  the 
regiment,  and  we  find  Wolfe  interceding  for  him. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Canterbury,  l^th  Nov.^  1755. 

Dear  Sir, — I  find  that  poor  Lafausille  has  been  extremely 

out  of  order.    Nothing  but  the  worst  health  in  the  world  would, 

I  am  persuaded,  have  taken  him  away  at  this  time.     I  mention 

this,  because  I  remember  that  a  sharp  expression  or  two  fell 

1  Charles  Spencer,  fifth  Earl  of  Sunderland  and  second  Duke  of  Marl- 
boroughj  grandson  of  the  first  Duke.  He  died  of  a  fever^  a  Lieutenant-General, 
at  Munster  in  1758. 

2  The  cause  of  the  peculiar  privileges  of  a  man  of  Kent  is  explained  in 
that  ''the  said  country  was  not  conquered  with  the  rest  of  the  kingdom, 
but  surrendered  itself  up  to  the  Conqueror  by  a  peace  made  with  him,  saving 
to  itself  all  liberties  and  free  customs  before  that  time  had  and  used." — See 
Hasted's  Kent. 

3  The  Duke  of  Richmond  obtained  a  captaincy  in  the  regiment  under  Wolfe, 
and  his  Grace's  example  was  followed  by  the  Marquis  of  Blandford.—- Wright. 


282    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

from  me  upon  the  score  of  my  old  acquaintance  ;  and  when  one 
has  done  a  man  injustice,  but  in  thought,  the  quickest  and  best 
reparation  should  be  made. 

I  hear  that  the  French  are  hard  at  work  in  cleaning  the 
harbour  of  Dunkirk,  and  that  they  have  got  a  good  number  of 
ships  in  that  port.  The  English  will  never  bear  to  have  that 
harbour  in  its  former  condition  ;  that  alone  is  matter  enough 
for  a  quarrel  between  the  nations,  already  far  advanced  towards 
war.  We  send  a  detachment  to-morrow  to  escort  our  battalion 
guns  (two  for  each  regiment)  from  Rochester.  Our  camps 
necessaries  will  be  with  us  in  a  few  days.  We  are  commanded 
to  exercise  as  often  as  is  convenient,  that  is,  as  often  as  the 
weather  will  permit.  I  am  vastly  distressed  for  a  groom,  or, 
rather,  for  a  servant,  who  can  take  care  of  two  horses  for  £1  or 
£S  a  year,  and  seven  shillings  a  week  board  wages.  If  my 
mother  hears  of  any  such  person  I  beg  to  have  notice,  and  I  beg 
she  will  employ  somebody  to  enquire. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

One  may  incidentally  observe  that  grooms"'  wages  have  risen 
to  a  somewhat  higher  figure  in  the  past  century  and  half ! 

To  HTs  Mother. 

Canterbury^  Sunday,  16  Nov.^  1755. 
Dear  Madam, — Lord  Albemarle,  who  knew  my  distress,  has, 
in  his  great  goodness,  sent  me  a  groom,  who  was  well  recom- 
mended to  him  ;  the  early  knowledge  of  this  may  save  you  some 
trouble,  and  therefore  I  mention  it. 

Just  so  much  of  your  letter  was  written  when  the  drum 
major  brought  me  yours.  If  I  was  not  already  provided  I  should 
readily  accept  the  services  of  your  footman  John,  especially  as  I 
have  no  maids  to  make  work  for  and  want  no  other  qualities 
than  sobriety  and  care  of  my  horses — this  includes  a  little 
honesty  which  one  can't  well  do  without. 

I  am  highly  obliged  to  you  for  the  steps  you  have  taken  in 
this  affair,  they  are  of  a  piece  with  your  constant  practice  in 
regard  to  me  and  I  am  sometimes  glad  that  I  have  need  of  your 
assistance  for  the  pleasure  of  receiving  it.  My  duty  to  my 
father.  I  wish  you  both  very  well,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 


'WOLFE'S'  REGIMENT  283 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  2nd  December,  1755. 

Dear  Madam, — I  hear  of  you  almost  every  day,  which 
makes  me  some  amends  for  the  profound  silence  that  reigns 
throughout  the  whole  house.  Donnellan  tells  you  all  the  news 
of  this  place,  and  yet  I  believe  his  letters  are  short ;  however, 
better  so  than  lists  of  killed  and  wounded,  or  the  progress  of 
the  French  arms  in  Kent.  They  are  extremely  concerned  that 
Admiral  Smith  is  so  posted  as  to  make  their  attempts  to  land  a 
little  dangerous.  They  do  not,  I  am  sorry  to  say,  discover  the 
same  degree  of  respect  for  us  ;  on  the  contrary,  they  wish  for 
nothing  so  much  as  to  be  quietly  on  shore,  and  then  to  make 
a  trial  of  our  force.  We  have  the  name  of  the  Duke  of  Marl- 
borough to  oppose  to  them,  and  some  incomparable  battalions, 
the  like  of  which  cannot.  111  venture  to  say,  be  found  in  any 
army.  We  are  about  as  merry,  as  easy,  and  as  indifferent  as 
you  may  be  supposed  to  be  who  sleep  in  security  under  our 
watch.  Nobody  seems  to  think  that  the  French  have  either 
will,  power,  or  inclination  to  resent  the  affronts  put  upon  them ; 
and  some,  I  believe,  doubt  whether  they  are  really  out  of 
humour  with  us  or  not.  This  melancholy  distruction  of  the  city 
of  Lisbon  ^  is  a  great  blow,  though  at  a  distance.  Long  may 
such  disasters  be  far  off  from  us. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

But  the  Duke  of  Cumberland's  popularity  had  not  long  to 
survive,  nor  his  period  of  usefulness.  A  time  was  close  at  hand 
when  his  military  proficiency  would  be  put  to  a  severe  test, 
when  he  would  be  forced  to  return  home  a  beaten  man,  to 
resign  the  command  of  the  army  he  had  assumed  at  a  period 
of  life — too  early  for  him  to  have  mastered  by  beneficial  degrees 
the  difficult  art  of  war.  His  acumen  in  discovering  and  his 
generosity  in  rewarding  the  talents  of  Wolfe  deserve  our  gratitude. 
In  his  renewed  intimacy  with  Cumberland,  Wolfe  seems  to  have 
reverted  to  the  project  which  General  Mordaunt  had  formerly 
mooted  :  of  his  father's  surrendering  the  Colonelcy  of  Wolfe's  in 
his  favour  on  condition  of  securing  him  an  annuity.  But  he 
wanted  the  Duke's  promise  that  if  he  fell  leading  Wolfe's  into 
action  the  command  should  revert  to  his  father. 

1  The  great  earthquake,  November  1,  1755. 


284    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  27  Dec,  1755. 
Dear  Madam, — ^The  great  personages  that  honour  us  with 
their  presence  are  so  well  entitled  to  a  considerable  part  of  our 
time  that  a  man  has  but  a  minute  for  his  own  little  concerns. 
Mine  shall  be  employed  to  thank  you  for  a  very  kind  letter, 
which  I  received  yesterday  and  to  assure  you  that  all  possible 
regard  shall  be  had  to  your  admonitions.  I  would  not  have 
you  write  with  pain  to  yourself,  but  I  am  always  extremely 
pleased  to  hear  from  you,  when  it  is  easy  to  you  to  write.  We 
have  had  strange,  tempestuous,  unwholesome  weather,  and  we 
are  so  crowded  together  that  I  have  been  apprehensive  of  ill 
consequences  from  the  moisture  of  the  air  and  open  weather  ; 
but  hitherto  we  are  pretty  healthy.  Do  you  know  of  any  young 
gentleman  that  you  would  wish  to  see  an  ensign  ?  any  relation 
or  friend's  relation  ?  I  believe  I  could  get  such  a  matter  done 
for  you  at  this  time.  The  letter  you  sent  me  came  from  the 
widow  of  a  poor  officer  who  was  killed  at  Fontenoy ;  she  has 
a  son  fit  to  serve  ;  and  Lord  Albemarle  has  undertaken  to  get 
him  a  pair  of  Colours.  I  met  with  her  by  accident  on  my 
journey  through  Ireland,  so  you  see  I  did  not  go  there  for 
nothing ! 

The  Duke''s  particular  civilities  to  me  gave  birth,  I  imagine, 
to  the  report  Blaquiere  spoke  of  to  my  father ;  but  you  see 
it  was  without  foundation.  I  knew  very  well  that  I  should  not 
get  a  regiment,  but  I  did  not  know  that  anybody  had  thought 
of  me  in  that  light  till  I  received  your  letter.  I  have  no 
prospect  of  preferment ;  nor  no  right  to  expect  it  in  the  common 
course  ;  but  if  I  knew  how  to  secure  =£^500  a  year  to  my  father 
in  case  he  should  give  me  his  regiment  and  I  miscarry,  I 
believe  I  could  manage  to  get  it  done.  If  the  Duke  would  say 
that  he  should  have  his  Regiment  again,  in  case  I  fell  at  the 
head  of  it,  or  .£^500  a  year  from  my  successor, — would  the 
General  in  that  case  consent  to  part  with  it,  taking  the  sale  of 
the  Lieutenant-Coloners  commission  for  his  use  ?  You  must 
take  the  trouble  to  ask  that  question,  and  let  me  know  my 
father's  answer.     I  wish  you  both  much  health, 

and  am.  Dear  Madam,  etc.. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

His  offer  to  procure  an  ensigncy  was  instantly  seized  upon  by 
Mrs.  Wolfe  in  favour  of  young  James  Adeane,  Mrs.  Inwood's  nephew. 


'LITTLE   ADEANE'  285 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  Jan.  5,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — The  very  moment  I  received  your  letter  I 
wrote  to  my  friend  Lord  Albemarle  to  recommend  little  Adeane. 
The  only  obstacle  that  stands  in  his  way  is  his  youth,  a  difficulty 
that  I  hope  his  Lordship  will  be  able  to  overcome.  However  we 
are  not  to  be  quite  sure  of  success,  and  the  disappointment  if  we 
should  miscarry,  will  be  so  much  the  less  ;  I  wish  the  recom- 
mendation may  take  place  because  I  know  it  gives  you  a 
particular  pleasure  to  serve  your  friends. 

God  send  you  better  health.     My  duty  to  my  father. 
I  am  dear  madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  19  Jan.,  1756. 
Dear  Madam, — My  Lord  Albemarle  wrote  me  word  in 
answer  to  my  letter  about  little  Adeane,  that  he  was  afraid  the 
commissions  were  all  filled  up  ;  I  shall  send  you  his  letter  upon 
that  subject.  I  wrote  to  him  a  second  time  but  have  as  yet 
received  no  answer.  I  want  to  know  exactly  how  old  he  is,  and 
how  tall,  and  whether  the  mother  would  choose  to  purchase  a 
Cornetcy  of  light  Dragoons  or  heavy  Dragoons  ;  in  case  the 
other  fails,  or  whether  she  cares  to  purchase  at  all  for  her  son. 
Pray  tell  the  General  that  I  shall  take  no  steps  in  the  affair  I 
proposed  to  him,  because  I  think  the  risk  grows  every  day 
greater,  at  least  I  would  do  nothing  but  with  certainty  and 
security  to  him. 

I  beg  my  duty  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  Feb.  7,  1756. 
Dear  Madam, — I  must  explain  to  you  that  my  kinsman  (as 
Lord  Albemarle  calls  him)  is  no  other  than  Mr.  Brad 
Thompson's  nephew,  who  should  have  come  into  Colonel 
Honeywood's  regiment,  and  would  now  have  been  the  third 
lieutenant,  whereas  he  is  at  present  the  youngest  in  the  Fusiliers. 
I  likewise  must  explain  to  you  that  Lord  Albemarle  supposes 
Mrs.   Adeane's  compliance    with  her  son's  military  rage,  to  be 


286     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

forced ;  and  that  she  solicits  an  enquiry  because  she  can't  help 
herself.  My  Lord,  you  see,  promises  in  the  handsomest  manner, 
and  he  will  surely  keep  his  word.  In  the  meanwhile,  Mrs. 
Adeane  should  keep  her  son  to  his  study,  and  if  possible  give 
him  a  little  mathematical  learning ;  upon  which  foundation 
he  may  best  hope  and  expect  to  rise.  You  may  keep  Lord 
Albemarle''s  letter  till  I  have  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you,  which  I 
believe  will  be  some  time  next  week.  Maxwell  and  I  shall  beg  a 
dinner  on  our  way  to  London,  where  my  private  affairs  oblige 
me  to  go  ;  and  I  hope  to  pass  the  next  day,  or  the  day  follow- 
ing at  Blackheath  on  my  way  back  to  quarters  ;  and  I  don't 
mean  to  have  it  known  in  London  that  I  am  there.  My  duty  to 
my  father — I  wish  you  both  all  happiness,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  most  affectionate  and  obedient  son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

PS. — Now  our  Colonel's  seat  in  Parliament  is  secure  we  may 
hope  to  get  franks. 

Wolfe  had  been  fond  of  his  uncle,  Bradwardine  Thompson,  who 
had  long  been  suffering  from  a  mortal  illness,  one  moreover  which 
injured  his  intellect.  He  had  never  neglected  to  write  or  pay  him 
a  visit  when  he  was  in  the  neighbourhood  of  York.  But  the  news 
of  his  death  affected  the  nephew  with  a  sense  of  relief.  He  had 
none  of  that  aversion  to  mortality  that  many  of  us  have.  He 
always  spoke  of  it  dispassionately,  as  if  a  long  contemplation  both 
in  connection  with  his  calling  and  in  his  own  weakly  person  had 
robbed  death  of  its  terrors. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  Feh.  20,  175G. 

Dear  Madam, — I  can't  say  I  am  sorry  for  my  poor  uncle's 

death,  otherwise  than  as  it  is  a  matter  of  concern  to  you,  which 

I  hope  will  not  be  more  lasting  than  the  cause  seems  to  demand. 

The  Duke's  coming  here  will  determine  my  going  to  town. 

I  shall  want  nothing  but  a  suit  of  black  clothes  and  fringed 

ruffles,  those  I  have  already  (I  mean  the  muslin  ones)  should  be 

lessened  in  their  depth — and  two  or  three  more  pairs  bespoke  of 

a  proper  size.     Will  you  take  the  trouble  to  do  this  business  for 

me,  and  I  shall  thank  you  .?    My  duty  to  my  father.    I  am  always, 

My  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 


JEFFREY-AMHERST  287 

To  HIS  Father. 

Canterbury,  Sunday,  March  21,  1756. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  sorry  to  hear  that  my  servant's  mistake 
was  the  occasion  of  some  trouble  to  you  ;  half  the  inconveniences 
of  life  arise  from  their  absurdities.  I  know  he  has  too  much 
respect  for  you  to  intend  the  least  disorder  in  your  house ;  but 
his  conduct  like  the  most  of  them,  is  a  succession  of  errors.  My 
mother  mentioned  your  having  settled  with  Capt.  Scott,  which, 
at  this  time,  was  undoubtedly  a  prudent  step ;  there  are  other 
precautions  to  be  taken,  which  the  state  of  public  affairs,  and 
your  judgement  upon  these  matters  will  naturally  point  out. 

I  hear  with  pleasure  today,  that  my  friend  Amherst^  has 
got  a  regiment ;  nobody  deserves  the  King's  favour  better  than 
that  man. 

There  are  15  or  16  Swiss  officers  with  30  sergeants  quartered 
at  Dover  ready  to  embark  for  America.  They  have  people 
employed  in  Switzerland  and  Germany  to  recruit,  and  I  believe 
they  have  been  pretty  successful.  These  recruiting  officers  and 
their  men  are  to  be  sent  over  in  a  second  embarkation.  The 
Guards  got  into  Dover  Castle  about  5  yesterday  in  the  after- 
noon, after  a  long  fatiguing  march.  They  comfort  themselves 
with  the  hopes  of  being  soon  recalled.  I  wish  you  all  manner  of 
happiness. 

My  duty  to  my  mother. 
I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  April  4,  1756. 
Dear  Madam, — Though  I  have  nothing  to  communicate, 
nor  anything  to  offer  you  but  my  good  wishes,  still  as  you 
desire  I  write.  The  fine  season  will  call  us  all  to  business  and 
leave  no  excuse  or  pretence  for  the  lazy  and  indolent  to  indulge 
their  dispositions.  Would  you  believe  that  there  are  many  who 
call  themselves  soldiers,  who,  to  excuse  their  shameful  idleness, 

1  Jeffrey  Amherst,  born  at  Riverhead,  Kent,  in  1717,  was  early  taken  into 
the  service  of  the  Duke  of  Dorset  at  Knole  as  page.  He  showed  ability,  was 
educated  at  the  Duke's  expense  and  a  commission  obtained  for  him  in  the 
army.  Riverhead  is  only  about  four  miles  from  Westerham,  but  as  Amherst 
was  ten  years  Wolfe's  junior  they  doubtless  never  met  until  Wolfe  was  in  the 
army. 


288    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

cry  out  that  they  believe  there  will  be  no  war — no  Invasion — 
and  so  act,  as  if  they  were  persuaded  of  the  truth  of  it.  Our 
Major  will  call  upon  you  to  ask  how  you  are  and  to  take  a 
sword  out  of  a  little  deal  box,  which  you  will  be  pleased  to 
order  to  be  shut  up  again,  when  he  has  provided  himself  with  a 
weapon. 

Mrs.  Beckwith  has  got  another  child,  so  that  he  is  now  the 
father  of  four  sons  and  I  have  not  one  ! 

My  duty  to  the  General, 

I  am  dear  Madam,  etc.  etc. 

J.  Wolfe. 


To  HIS  Father. 

Canterbury^  17  April,  1756. 

Dear  Sir, — I  do  not  know  how  to  press  for  favours  that 
have  been  promised ;  it  is  with  difficulty  that  I  can  bring  myself 
to  ask,  and  still  more  difficult  to  repeat  the  request.  Mrs. 
Adeane  must  remember  that  when  I  mentioned  this  affair  first, 
the  vacancies  were  not  filled  up,  and  then  it  was  easy  for  Lord 
Albemarle  to  oblige  me ;  you  have  seen  his  Lordship''s  letter, 
his  reasons  for  not  doing  it,  as  well  as  his  assurance  that  it  shall 
be  done.  The  boy  is  very  young,  a  year  more  of  the  school  will 
be  time  well  spent.  As  the  delay  is  a  disappointment  to  Mrs. 
Adeane  I  am  sorry  for  it,  but  if  she  is  not  satisfied  with  our 
disinterested  good  endeavours  to  serve  her,  I  think  she  may  be 
called  unreasonable.^ 

These  two  unfortunate  Ensigns  will  be  proceeded  against 
in  common  course  of  Law ;  one  or  both  of  them  will  be 
condemned  and  unless  their  youth  and  condition  when  they 
committed  this  ill  action,  pleads  in  their  favour,  they  must 
pay  the  forfeit  of  their  lives ;  but  till  the  law  has  taken  place, 
and  his  Majesty's  pleasure  is  known,  I  believe  they  will  still  be 
Ensigns. 

When  I  see  Lord  Albemarle  I  will  take  the  freedom  to 
remind  him  of  his  intended  kindness,  and  I  hope  some  time  or 
other  to  succeed.     I  rejoice  mightily  at  my  mother's  better  state 

1  James  Whorwood,  son  of  Simon  Adeane,  Esq.,  of  Chalgrove,  Oxford- 
shire, and  Mary,  third  daughter  of  the  Hon.  and  Rev.  Henry  Brydges  (sister 
to  Mrs.  In  wood  and  Miss  Brydges).  In  17B8  he  was  appointed  to  the 
Colonelcy  of  the  45th  Regiment,  and  became  a  Lieutenant-General.  He  was 
a  Gentleman  of  the  Bedchamber  to  George  III,  M.P.  for  the  county  of 
Cambridge,  and  died  in  1802. — Wright. 


SHOOTER'S   HILL   MURDER        289 

of   health,   and   wish  her  and  you  all  happiness.     My   duty 
to  her. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Yoiu:  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  have  got  a  famous  receipt  for  the  gout  and  another 
for  the  rheumatism  which  I  will  send  you. 

The  story  alluded  to  by  Wolfe  caused  a  great  sensation  at  the 
time.  Two  reckless  young  subalterns  of  Lord  Charles  Hay's 
regiment,  stationed  at  Dartford,  were  travelling  to  the  capital 
in  a  post-chaise.  They  had  been  drinking  deeply,  professed  to 
be  in  a  tremendous  hurry  and  kept  the  horses  at  such  a  pace 
that  the  post-boy  was  at  his  wifs  end.  Both  used  the  most 
profane  language  towards  the  poor  lad.  At  Shooter's  Hill,  pro- 
testing the  animals  were  fatigued,  he  allowed  the  pace  to  slacken, 
whereupon  Ensign  Brown  jumped  out  of  the  chaise  and  knocked 
him  down.  This  was  followed  up  by  Ensign  Lauder's  drawing  his 
sword  and  running  it  through  the  post-boy's  recumbent  body. 
After  this  gallant  achievement  both  were  apprehended  and  tried 
for  their  lives  at  Rochester.  Lauder  was  found  guilty  and  three 
days  later  was  hanged  on  Penenden  Heath.  Outrages  of  this 
kind  naturally  tended  greatly  to  lower  the  military  character  in 
the  eyes  of  the  multitude.  tJnluckily  they  were  of  no  infrequent 
occurrence,  several  cases  of  assault  and  seduction  by  officers  hap- 
pening within  a  comparatively  short  space  of  time. 


XIII 

AGAIN   IN  THE   WEST 

All  winter  had  Wolfe  been  stationed  at  Canterbury.  An 
old  resident  remembered  him  as  a  regular  attendant  at  the  Cathedral 
services,  and  his  straight  martial  figure,  "  lean  as  a  greyhound,*" 
came  to  be  familiar  to  all  the  inhabitants  of  the  ancient  Cathedral 
city.  It  was  May-time  in  Kent,  and  the  orchards  were  loaded  with 
blossom,  when  orders  at  last  arrived  for  the  regiment  to  march 
away  from  Wolfe'*s  native  county  into  Wiltshire. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  May  12th,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — John  tells  me  that  you  mentioned  my  not 
having  writ  to  you.  As  I  sent  him  to  London  he  could  give 
you  intelligence,  and  as  he  had  directions  to  enquire  concerning 
your  health,  I  concluded  it  was  unnecessary  to  trouble  you  with 
letters.  He  says  you  were  both  pretty  well  when  he  left  you, 
which  I  rejoice  at  most  sincerely. 

The  regt.  that  has  lain  awhile  at  Dover  marched  veiy 
suddenly  towards  Portsmouth  along  the  coast.  I  conclude  they 
are  to  embark  on  board  the  fleet.  We  suppose  that  one  of  the 
other  regiments  here  will  be  sent  to  Dover.  In  the  mean- 
while Donnellan  has  marched  with  200  men  to  guard  the 
castle,  and  carry  on  the  works  there.  All  notions  of  peace  are 
now  at  an  end.  The  most  discerning  people  of  the  country  have 
long  been  of  opinion  that  a  war  would  be  the  certain  consequence 
of  the  steps  that  have  been  taken  by  us,  in  return  for  the  attempts 
made  by  the  French. 

The  embargo  laid  upon  the  shipping,  the  violent  press  for 
seamen,  and  the  putting  soldiers  on  board  of  our  fleet,  makes  me 
conclude  that  the  maritime  strength  of  our  enemy  is  by  no  means 
contemptible  ;  and  as  we  are  open  to  assaults  in  almost  every  part 
of  the  King's  dominions,  both  here  and  in  America,  I  am  much 
of  opinion  that  the  enemy's  first  attack  will  be  vigorous  and 
successful.  We  must,  however,  hope  that  fortune  will  favour  us, 
since  we  do  our  best  to  deserve  her  smiles. 

290 


WAB   DECLARED  291 

You  have  always  my  good  wishes.  I  beg  my  duty  to  my 
father  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

War  had  not  been  declared,  but  England  was  momentarily 
expecting  France  to  strike  fii-st  by  a  landing  on  her  shores,  when 
news  flew  from  lip  to  lip  that  Minorca  had  fallen.  It  appeared 
that  a  French  fleet  had  appeared  off*  the  island  which,  owing  to 
lack  of  all  precaution  to  save  it  as  well  as  the  arrant  incapacity,  to 
say  the  least,  of  Admiral  Byng,  fell  an  easy  prey.  The  cup  w^as 
now  full :  no  longer  could  the  absui'd  pretence  of  peace  be  main- 
tained, and  on  the  18th  of  May,  1756,  the  famous  Seven  Years' 
War  began. 

Never  did  a  more  incapable  administration  hold  the  reins  of 
power  in  England.  Nothing  was  ready,  nothing  was  known  of  how 
to  get  things  ready.  There  was  no  general,  neither  was  there  any 
admiral  in  whom  the  country  reposed  the  slightest  confidence. 

Both  officers  and  men  had  hoped  that  when  they  moved 
from  Canterbury  it  would  be  to  embark  for  foreign  parts.  For 
war  was  declared — two  days  before  the  regiment  marched. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Canterbury,  May  2Qth,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — We  go  nearer  to  Blackheath  than  Wester- 
ham  so  that  I  can''t  take  my  square  trunk  and  hatbox  with  me  ; 
but  you  will  be  so  good  to  order  them  to  be  delivered  to  one 
Grassy,  who  is  hired  to  serve  me  instead  of  an  unhealthy  groom, 
that  I  am  forced  to  dismiss  ;  he  will  convey  them  from  Greenwich 
to  London  by  water,  and  from  thence  to  Newbury,  or  to  the 
Devizes  (where  our  route  ends)  in  the  waggon  or  stage  coach.  I 
am  Sony  to  be  so  troublesome  to  you,  and  still  more  concerned 
that  I  am  not  likely  to  have  the  satisfaction  of  seeing  you  again 
for  some  time.  The  first  division  of  our  Regiment  marched 
yesterday,  and  the  second  and  last  moves  tomorrow  under  the 
Lieut. -ColoneFs  command.  You  can't  imagine  how  many  heavy 
hearts  there  are,  mine  (although  not  altogether  insensible)  is  the 
least  oppressed  of  a  score.  I  wish  you  both  all  happiness,  and  am 
with  my  duty  to  my  Father,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

James  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  WolfEj 
Btackheath. 

U  2 


292    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

He  had  hoped  to  call  upon  his  parents,  but  though  baulked 
of  this,  managed  to  spend  a  few  hours  at  Squerryes  Court,  where 
he  was  always  a  welcome  visitor. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Basingstoke^  June  Istj  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — In  our  march  we  have  met  with  nothing 
extraordinary  except  the  Hessian  Grenadiers,  whom  we  saw  at 
exercise  yesterday  near  Farnham.  We  have  ruined  half  the 
public  houses  upon  the  march,  because  they  have  quartered  us 
in  villages  too  poor  to  feed  us  without  destruction  to  themselves. 
I  saw  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Warde  at  Westerham  ;  they  asked  much 
after  you  and  the  General,  and  presented  their  compliments. 
The  Lisbon  mail  is  arrived,  so  you  may  expect  some  account  of 
the  seige  of  Fort  St.  Philips,  and  of  Admiral  Byng*'s  feats  in  the 
Mediterranean.  If  things  take  a  bad  turn,  and  by  our  manage- 
ment I  don't  know  what  other  to  expect  this  war  may  rout  the 
funds  and  destroy  our  public  credit  root  and  branch. 

For  a  full  fortnight  the  troops  marched.  A  halt  at  Basingstoke 
was  made  on  the  1st  of  June,  whence  Wolfe  dispatched  a  letter 
to  his  mother,  which  evinces  the  keen  interest  he  was  taking  in 
the  development  of  the  war. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Bristol,  1th  June,  1766. 

Dear  Sir, — As  I  believe  that  all  the  infantry  of  this  nation 
is  not  sufficient  to  retake  the  Island  of  Minorca  (by  this  time  in  the 
hands  of  the  French),  and  as  six  or  seven  battalions  may  be 
thought  enough  for  the  defence  of  Gibraltar, — the  Spaniards  not 
interfering, — I  conclude  we  shall  lie  quiet  in  our  west-country  camp 
or  quarters  till  the  enemy  thinks  to  alarm  us  a  second  time  with 
design  to  strike  some  fatal  distant  blow,  either  upon  our  islands  or 
upon  the  Continent  of  North  America,  or  perhaps  to  complete  the 
ruin  of  the  East  Indies.  Are  the  measures  taken  for  the  relief 
of  Minorca,  or  the  proceedings  of  our  Admiral,  to  be  most 
admired  ?  I  shall  be  of  your  opinion  hereafter,  that  we  must 
have  the  odds  of  five  to  four  to  secure  our  success  at  sea.  I 
flatter  myself  that  the  poor  little  abandoned  garrison  of  St. 
Philips  will  do  courageously  at  least, — wisely  and  skilfully  I  do 
not  expect ;  and  that  the  troops  in  the  course  of  the  war  will  do 
nothing  dishonourable,  not  betray  their  country. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc. 


THE  THOMPSON    HOUSE   AT   YORK   (FROM    WHICH    MRS.    WOLFE   WAS   MARRIED) 


COLONEL  Wolfe's  quarters  at  devizes  (on  lkft) 


HIS   NEW   COLONEL  293 

To  HIS  Father. 

Devizes,  21th  June,  1756. 

Dear  Sir, — I  wish  you  joy  of  Admiral  B3mg''s  escape,  and  of 
the  safe  arrival  of  our  fleet  at  Gibraltar.  General  Blakeney  has 
no  great  obligations  to  the  Navy  upon  this  occasion.  They  have 
left  him  in  an  ugly  scrape,  out  of  which,  I  am  persuaded,  he  will 
only  be  delivered  by  a  cannon-shot.  The  project  of  succouring 
Minorca,  and  the  execution  of  the  great  design,  went  hand-in-hand 
successfully,  and  may  probably  end  in  a  disgraceful  peace.  You 
are  happy  in  your  infirmity,  for  'tis  a  disgrace  to  act  in  these 
dishonourable  times.  Our  new  Colonel  is  expected  to-day ;  his 
presence  makes  me  a  very  idle  man. 

I  am,  etc. 

The  new  Colonel  was  William  Kingsley,  who  long  gave  his 
name  to  the  Twentieth,  and  commanded  at  Minden.  He  died  in 
1 769,  a  Lieutenant-General. 

At  Devizes  Wolfe  secured  lodgings  at  a  quiet  inn  to  which  he 
had  been  recommended,  preferring  it  to  possible  harassments  such 
as  had  attended  his  quarters  at  Canterbury,  and  especially  as  he 
hoped  and  believed  his  stay  in  Devizes  would  be  brief.  The  inn — 
now  no  longer  an  inn — is  still  pointed  out  after  the  lapse  of  a 
century  and  a  half,  at  the  back  of  the  town  hall.^  The  regiment 
and  its  colonel,  probably  in  view  of  the  national  posture  of  affairs, 
probably  made  a  deeper  impression  on  the  townsfolk  than  they 
would  ordinarily  have  done.  For  a  royal  proclamation  was  posted 
up  calling  for  recruits  to  serve  their  country  against  England's 
hereditary  enemy,  against  whom  war  had  been  declared.  For  a 
time  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  did  a  good  business  in  recruiting. 
His  health  was  anything  but  good  at  Devizes,  but  he  kept  up 
his  spirits  in  his  home  letters.  He  speaks  playfully  of  his  old 
friend.  Lady  Grey,  the  widow  of  Sir  Henry  Grey  of  Howick, 
whose  youngest  son  was  in  Wolfe's  regiment,  and  who  took  the 
deepest  interest  in  the  gallant  Lieutenant-Colonel.  It  deserves 
to  be  mentioned  that  Charles  Grey,  Wolfe's  young  fellow-officer, 
who  afterwards  expressed  what  he  owed  to  his  superior  officer,  rose 
to  be  a  General,  and  died  Earl  Grey  of  Howick,  father  of  the 
celebrated  statesman  who  carried  the  Reform  Bill  in  1832. 

^  The  present  Mayor  of  Devizes  (1909)  writes  me  that  the  house  has  a 
double  interest,  in  that  here,  Gibbon,  the  historian,  lodged,  when  manoeuvring 
with  his  regiment  of  Militia  in  1761-2. 


294    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Devizes,  10^^  July,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — The  demand  you  make  for  my  receipts  looks 
as  if  you  wanted  them  for  your  own  use ;  I  rather  hope  they  are 
for  your  friends,  knowing  that  you  take  as  much  care  of  them  as 
of  yourself.  I  have  distinguished  the  receipts  to  do  justice  to 
both  my  old  ladies.  I  have  heard  of  my  Lady  Grey  very  lately ; 
she  sent  me  her  compliments,  and,  what  was  more  (as  she  ex- 
pressed it),  her  love.  You  see,  I  have  the  art  of  preserving  the 
affections  of  my  mistresses,  and  I  may  be  vain  of  these  conquests 
without  offence,  or  danger  to  my  reputation. 

The  King  of  Prussia  (God  bless  him  !)  is  our  only  ally,  and 
we  are  solely  obliged  to  the  Duchy  of  Silesia  for  his  friendship. 
I  am  sorry  that  they  don't  all  unite  against  us,  that  our  strength 
might  be  fully  exerted  and  our  force  known.  I  myself  believe 
that  we  are  a  match  for  the  combined  fleets  of  Europe,  especi- 
ally if  our  admirals  and  generals  were  all  of  the  same  spirit. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Devizes,  Vjth  July,  1756. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  informed  by  a  politician  of  this  country 
that  the  loss  of  the  Island  of  Minorca  will  not  influence  the 
Spanish  court,  nor  engage  them  in  a  war  against  us.  I  wish  my 
acquaintance  may  have  good  intelligence,  and  that  the  Spaniards 
may  not  be  tempted  by  the  cession  of  that  island  to  become  our 
enemies.  But  my  own  opinion  is  that  they  will,  and  the  seige 
of  Gibraltar  by  sea  and  land,  with  the  combined  fleets,  will  be 
the  first  consequence  of  that  formidable  union  ;  in  which,  how- 
ever, I  am  fully  persuaded  they  will  miscarry ;  provided  always 
that  the  Lord  Baron  of  Tyrawley,  your  neighbour,^  takes  care  to 
have  three  months'*  provisions  for  eight  or  ten  battalions,  and 
100  pieces  of  cannon  towards  the  sea,  and  thirty  or  forty  mortars 
with  very  large  mouths,  by  way  of  sinking  the  "  Foudroyant "" 
and  the  "  Real  '"*  if  they  venture  too  near. 

Mr.  Bjrng  has  been  a  tedious  time  beating  up  to  Minorca. 
These  delays  either  by  wind  or  inclination,  are  fatal  to  us, 
because  Sir  Edward  Hawke  can  hardly  arrive  in  time  to  prevent 
the  French  admiral  from  taking  away  a  part  of  the  Duke  of 

^  Tyrawley  was  Fowke's  successor  as  Governor  of  Gibraltar.     He  lived  at 
Blackheath,  and  was  something  of  a  wit. 


HENRY  TOWNSHEND  295 

Richelieu"'s  army,  and  escorting  them  safe  to  Toulon.  So,  upon 
summing  up  the  whole  of  our  conduct  in  this  affair,  both  as  to 
the  project  and  execution,  it  does  appear  to  me  that  we  are  the 
most  egregious  blunderers  in  war  that  ever  took  the  hatchet  in 
hand.  But  what  makes  me  laugh  is  our  extravagant  fears  of 
an  invasion  at  a  time  when  it  is  absolutely  absurd  and  almost 
impossible,  unless  we  are  to  suppose  that  the  Danish  fleet  is 
coming  out  of  the  Baltic  on  purpose  to  escort  ten  or  twelve 
French  battalions  to  England. 

I  am,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

No  more  signal  proof  of  Wolfe's  fame  at  this  period,  even 
though  he  was  but  thirty,  and  a  simple  Lieutenant-Colonel  in  rank, 
can  be  afforded  than  by  the  manner  in  which  his  counsel  was  con- 
stantly being  sought  by  young  members  of  the  military  profession, 
animated  by  the  new  zeal  for  efficiency  that  Wolfe,  more  than  any 
other  man  save  Chatham  in  his  epoch,  was  to  render  fashionable. 
One  of  the  letters  he  addressed  to  such  has  been  preserved.  The 
applicant  was  no  obscure  person,  but  the  future  Lord  Sydney, 
whose  father,  Thomas  Townshend,  held  an  important  post  in  the 
Government.  Townshend's  young  brother,  Henry  Townshend,'* 
was  desirous  of  entering  the  army.  It  will  be  noted  that  Wolfe 
refers  to  a  previous  letter  having  been  addressed  to  a  young  officer 
named  Cornwallis.  This  subaltern  of  a  year's  standing  was 
destined  to  become  the  famous  Marquis  Cornwallis,  a  far  abler 
man  than  his  ill-fortunes  in  America  a  quarter  of  a  century  later 
would  seem  to  show.  Cornwallis  was  another  soldier  who  never 
forgot  the  early  influence  of  the  Conqueror  of  Quebec. 

To  Thomas  Townshend. 

Devizes,  Sunday,  \^th  July,  1756. 
Dear  Sir, — You  cannot  find  me  a  more  agreeable  employ- 
ment than  to  serve  and  oblige  you,  and  I  wish  with  all  my  heart 
that  my  inclinations  and  abilities  were  of  equal  force.     I  do  not 
recollect  what  it  was  that  I  recommended  to  Mr.  Comwallis's  . 
nephew :  it  might  be  the  Comte  de  Turpin's  book,^  which  is  I 
certainly   worth    looking  into,   as  it   contains   a   good  deal  of  ' 
plain  practice.     Your  brother,  no  doubt,  is  master  of  the  Latin 
and  French  languages,  and  has  some  knowledge  of  the  mathe- 

1  Essai  sur  VArt  de  la  Guerre^  Paris,  1754. 


296    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

matics ;  without  the  last  he  can  never  become  acquainted  with 
one  considerable  branch  of  our  business,  the  construction  of 
fortification  and  the  attack  and  defence  of  places ;  and  I  would 
advise  him  by  all  means  to  give  up  a  year  or  two  of  his  time 
now  while  he  is  young,  if  he  has  not  already  done  it,  to  the 
study  of  the  mathematics,  because  it  will  greatly  facilitate  his 
progress  in  military  matters. 

As  to  the  books  that  are  fittest  for  this  purpose,  he  may 
begin  with  the  "King  of  Prussia's  Regulations  for  his  Horse 
and  Foot,"  where  the  economy  and  good  order  of  an  army  in  the 
lower  branches  are  extremely  well  established.  Then  there  are 
the  "  Memoirs  '"*  of  the  Marquis  de  Santa  Cruz,  Feuquieres,  and 
Montecucculi ;  Folard's  "  Commentaries  upon  Polybius "  ;  the 
"  Projet  de  Tactique  "  ;  "  L'Attaque  et  la  Defense  des  Places,'''* 
par  le  Marechal  de  Vauban ;  "  Les  Memoires  de  Goulon "  ; 
"  Klngenieur  de  Campagne.**'  Le  Sieur  Renie  for  all  that 
concerns  artillery.  Of  the  ancients,  Vegetius,  Caesar,  Thucy- 
dides,  Xenophon's  "  Life  of  Cyrus,'*'  and  "  Retreat  of  the  Ten 
Thousand  Greeks.''''  I  do  not  mention  Polybius,  because  the 
Commentaries  and  the  History  naturally  go  together.  Of  later 
days,  Davila,  Guicciardini,  Strada,  and  the  "Memoirs  of  the 
Due  de  Sully.'*''  There  is  an  abundance  of  military  knowledge  to 
be  picked  out  of  the  lives  of  Gustavus  Adolphus  and  Charles  XH, 
King  of  Sweden,  and  of  Zisca  the  Bohemian  ;  and  if  a  tolerable 
account  could  be  got  of  the  exploits  of  Scanderbeg,  it  would  be 
inestimable ;  for  he  excels  all  the  officers,  ancient  and  modern, 
in  the  conduct  of  a  small  defensive  army.  I  met  with  him  in 
the  Turkish  History,  but  nowhere  else.^  The  "Life  of  Sueto- 
nius,'" too,  contains  many  fine  things  in  this  way.  There  is  a 
book  lately  published  that  I  have  heard  commended,  "  L''Art  de 
la  Guerre  Pratique '" — I  suppose  it  is  collected  from  all  the  best 
authors  that  treat  of  war ;  and  there  is  a  little  volume,  entitled 
"  Traite  de  la  Petite  Guerre,'''  that  your  brother  should  take  in 

^  Jolin  de  Trocznow,  whose  military  abilites  are  acknowledged  by  all 
historians  of  his  times,  rendered  himself  famous  in  the  religious  wars  of 
Germany,  in  the  fifteenth  century.  He  received  the  sobriquet  of  Zisca,  or 
"  one-eyed,"  from  having  in  his  youth  lost  an  eye  in  battle.     He  died  of  the 

Elague  in  1424.  Zisca  has  been  ranked  amongst  the  Reformers,  and  a  life  of 
im,  as  such,  by  W.  Gilpin,  was  published  in  1765. 
George  Castriot,  son  of  an  Albanian  prince,  was  born  in  1404,  and  sent  as 
a  hostage  to  the  court  of  Sultan  Amurath  II,  where  he  was  educated  in  the 
Mahometan  faith.  Owing  to  his  strength  and  courage,  he  was  given  the  name 
of  Alexander  (in  Turkish,  Scander),  which  was  accompanied  with  the  title  of 
Bey,  or  Beg. 


ADVICE   TO  A   SUBALTERN        297 

his  pocket  when  he  goes  upon  out-duty  and  detachments.     The 
Mareshal  de  Puysegur's  book,  too,  is  in  esteem. 

I  believe  Mr.  Townshend  will  think  this  catalogue  long 
enough  ;  and  if  he  has  patience  to  read,  and  desire  to  apply  (as 
I  am  persuaded  he  has),  the  knowledge  contained  in  them,  there 
is  also  wherewithal  to  make  him  a  considerable  person  in  his 
profession,  and  of  course  very  useful  and  serviceable  to  his 
country.  In  general,  the  lives  of  all  great  commanders,  and  all 
good  histories  of  warlike  nations,  will  be  instructive,  and  lead 
him  naturally  to  endeavour  to  imitate  what  he  must  necessarily 
approve  of.  In  these  days  of  scarcity,  and  in  these  unlucky 
times,  it  is  much  to  be  wished  that  all  our  young  soldiers  of 
birth  and  education  would  follow  your  brother  s  steps,  and,  as 
they  will  have  their  turn  to  command,  that  they  would  try  to 
make  themselves  fit  for  the  important  trust ;  without  it  we  must 
sink  under  the  superior  abilities  and  indefatigable  industry  of 
our  restless  neighbours.  You  have  drawn  a  longer  letter  upon 
yourself  than  perhaps  you  expected ;  but  I  could  hardly  make  it 
shorter,  without  doing  wrong  to  a  good  author.  In  what  a 
strange  manner  have  we  conducted  our  affairs  in  the  Mediter- 
ranean !  Quelle  belle  occasion  Trmnqxde. 
I  am,  with  perfect  esteem,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

It  only  remains  to  be  added  that  Townshend  attained  the  rank 
of  Colonel,  and  was  killed  in  battle,  June  1762.  "  The  favourite 
of  the  whole  army,""  wrote  Collins,  and  even  Walpole  gives  him  high 
praise. 

There  is  extant  still  another  letter  from  Wolfe  at  this  time, 
conveying  friendly  coimsel  to  a  subaltern.  It  was  addressed  to 
Hugh  Lord,  a  nephew  of  Rickson'*s.^ 

To  Hugh  Lord. 

Dear  Huty, — By  a  letter  from  my  mother,  I  find  you  are 
now  an  officer  in  Lord  Chas.  Hay'*s  Regiment,  which  I  heartily 
give  you  joy  of,  and,  as  I  sincerely  wish  you  success  in  life,  you 
will  give  me  leave  to  give  you  a  few  hints  which  may  be  of  use 
to  you  in  it.     The  field  you  are  going  into  is  quite  new  to  you, 

1  This  letter  is  now  in  the  possession  of  Mr.  Charles  Dalton.  It  has  the 
water-mark  which  all  Wolfe's  letters  to  his  friend,  Major  Rickson,  bear.  An 
account  of  this  water-mark  is  given  by  Mr.  Dalton  in  the  Journal  of  the  Royal 
United  Service  Institution  for  December,  1902. 


298    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

but  may  be  trod  very  safely,  and  soon  made  known  to  you,  if 
you  only  get  into  it  by  the  proper  entrance. 

I  make  no  doubt  but  you  have  entirely  laid  aside  the  boy 
and  all  boyish  amusements,  and  have  considered  yourself  as  a 
young  man  going  into  a  manly  profession,  where  you  must  be 
answerable  for  your  own  conduct ;  your  character  in  life  must  be 
that  of  a  soldier  and  a  gentleman ;  the  first  is  to  be  acquired  by 
application  and  attendance  on  your  duty  ;  the  second  by  adhering 
most  strictly  to  the  dictates  of  honour,  and  the  rules  of  good 
breeding ;  and  be  most  particular  in  each  of  these  points  when 
you  join  your  Regiment ;  if  there  are  any  officers''  guard  mounted, 
be  sure  constantly  to  attend  the  parade,  observe  carefully  the 
manner  of  the  officers  taking  their  posts,  the  exercise  of  their 
espontoon,  etc. ;  when  the  guard  is  marched  off  from  the  parade, 
attend  it  to  the  place  of  relief,  and  observe  the  manner  and  form 
of  relieving,  and  when  you  return  to  your  chamber  (which  should 

(be  as  soon  as  you  could,  lest  what  you  saw  slip  out  of  your 
memory),  consult  Bland's  Military  Discipline'^  on  that  head; 
this  will  be  the  readiest  method  of  learning  this  part  of  your 
duty,  which  is  what  you  will  be  the  soonest  called  on  to  perform. 
When  off  duty  get  a  serjt  or  corporal,  whom  the  adjutant  will 
recommend  to  you,  to  teach  you  the  exercise  of  the  firelock, 
which  I  beg  of  you  to  make  yourself  as  much  master  of  as  if  you 
were  a  simple  soldier,  the  exact  and  nice  knowledge  of  this  will 
readily  bring  you  to  understand  all  other  parts  of  your  duty, 
make  you  a  proper  judge  of  the  performance  of  the  men,  and 
qualify  you  for  the  post  of  an  adjutant,  and  in  time  many  other 
employments  of  credit. 

When  you  are  posted  to  your  company,  take  care  that  the 
Serjeants  or  corporals  constantly  bring  you  the  orders;  treat 
those  officers  with  kindness,  but  keep  them  at  a  distance,  so  will 
you  be  beloved  and  respected  by  them.  Read  your  orders  with 
attention,  and  if  anything  in  particular  concerns  yourself,  put  it 

I  down  in  your  memorandum  book,  which  I  would  have  you  [keep] 
constantly  in  your  pocket  ready  for  any  remarks.  Be  sure  to 
attend  constantly  morning  and  evening  the  roll  calling  of  the 
company;  watch  carefully  the  absentees,  and  enquire  into 
reasons  for  their  being  so  ;  and  particularly  be  watchful  they  do 
not  endeavour  to  impose  on  you  sham  excuses,  which  they  are 

*  A  Treatise  on  Military  Discipline,  hy  Humphrey  Bland,  Esq.,  Brigadier- 
General  of  His  Majesty's  Forces,  London,  1743. 


"THAT  RASCAL   MR.   PHILPOT"      299 

apt  to  do  with  young  officers,  but  will  be  deterred  from  it  by  a 
proper  severity  in  detecting  them. 

{Here  unfortunately  the  rest  of  the  excellent  letter  has  been 
torn  off.) 

Like  other  men  Wolfe  had  his  private  and  his  professional 
manner.  His  extraordinary  enthusiasm  for  all  that  pertained  to 
the  making  of  a  good  soldier  and  a  good  Englishman  did  not 
prevent  his  being  intensely  human  at  times.  The  Wolfe  temper 
could  flare  up  in  astonishing  fashion,  and  one  cannot  help  express- 
ing wonder  as  to  exactly  what  would  have  happened  if  he  and  the 
"  rascal  Mr.  Philpot "  of  Canterbury  had  met  each  other  face  to  face. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Devizes,  Monday,  ^.Qth  July,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — Looking  over  my  papers,  I  found  that  rascal 
Mr.  Philpot's  two  last  receipts  and  the  lawyer's  receipt  for  what 
was  due  after  the  fugitive  had  evacuated  those  quarters.  They 
will  convince  you  of  two  points,  that  my  landlord  is  a  very 
great  rogue,  and  that  I  am  pretty  exact.  If  ever  I  catch  him, 
I  will  break  his  bones.  To-morrow  we  march  towards  our  camp, 
and  on  Thursday  morning  we  pitch  our  tents  upon  the  Downs, 
wathin  a  mile  and  a  half  of  Blandford.  If  there  is  an  ounce  of 
resolution  left,  we  sha'n't  lie  long  idle ;  but  I  am  afraid  we  have 
not  spirit  enough  for  an  undertaking  of  any  great  moment.  The 
Duke  of  Belleisle's  name  makes  our  pusillanimous  tremble,  and 
God  knows  there  was  never  less  cause. 

I  have  been  but  once  on  horseback  this  month  ;  however,  I 
find  myself  well  enough  to  march  with  the  regiment,  and  shall 
probably  recover  apace.  Our  new  Colonel  is  a  sensible  man, 
and  very  sociable  and  polite.  Little  Rickson  is  appointed  to 
act  as  Deputy  Quartermaster- General  in  Scotland,  a  place  of 
great  trust,  honour,  and  profit.  The  Duke  recommended  him  to 
be  Deputy  Governor  of  Pensylvania,  which  would  have  been 
worth  £\500  a  year  to  his  Excellency,  besides  the  glory  of 
waging  continual  war  with  the  wild  men  of  America,  but  a  more 
fortunate  man  stepped  in  with  better  support,  and  disappointed 
our  friend. 

Wish  a  great  deal  of  joy  to  Mr.  Aylmer^  in  my  name,  and 
tell  him  if  he  will  breed  any  soldiers  I  shall  engage  them  as  fast 

1  Brother  of  Lord  Aylmer,  of  Balrath.  Mrs.  Wolfe  bequeathed  £100  to 
Wolfe's  godson,  second  son  of  the  Hon.  Mr.  Aylmer. 


800    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

as  they  are  able  to  serve.  I  hear  that  Lafausille  ^  has  been  pre- 
paring for  action,  though  I  did  not  know  with  what  design  until 
you  cleared  it  up.  I'm  tired  of  proposing  anything  to  the 
officers  that  command  our  regiments ;  they  are  in  general  so 
lazy  and  so  bigoted  to  old  habits ;  though  I  must  do  him  the 
justice  to  say  that  he  differs  from  them  in  that  respect,  and  is 
industrious  beyond  measure. 

If  that  Byng  had  been  in  haste  to  retrieve  his  own  honour 
and  the  reputation  of  the  British  flag,  he  has  had  time  and 
strength  to  do  it.  But  I  fear  he  is  a  dog,  and  therefore  I  hope 
the  fleet  did  not  sail  from  Gibraltar  till  after  Sir  Edward  Hawke 
got  there.  It  would  have  been  of  infinite  concern  to  this  nation 
that  the  castle  of  St.  Philip  should  hold  out  till  the  second  or 
third  of  this  month.  If  they  had  been  all  demolished  by  their 
obstinacy  they  could  not  die  better.  You  see  what  haste  the 
Duke  of  Richelieu  made  to  get  for  the  fort ;  he  foresaw  the 
danger  of  our  fleet's  returning  with  the  Admirals  that  now 
command  it,  and  therefore,  under  pretence  of  doing  honour  to 
the  garrison  for  their  brave  defence,  and  to  Blakeney  in  particular, 
he  rejected  no  proposals  that  were  made.  His  sole  aim  was  to 
garrison  the  fort  and  get  back  to  Toulon  with  the  rest  of  his 
army  before  our  squadron  could  return  from  Gibraltar,  and  I  am 
afraid  he  has  succeeded  in  his  wish.  If  Byng  has  lost  one  day 
at  Gibraltar,  he  is  the  most  damnable  of  traitors. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

After  a  month  at  Devizes  the  regiment  marched  away  to 
Shroton,  near  Blandford,  where  the  troops  went  under  canvas. 
Here  for  ten  weeks  in  good  weather  they  lay  encamped. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Blandford  Camp,  August  Uhy  1756. 
Dear  Sir, — Our  little  army  collected  amounts  to  6 
Battalions,  6  squadrons  and  2  troops  of  light  horse  ;  and  we 
have  12  small  pieces  of  artillery.  We  are  encamped  upon  a 
very  wholesome  and  very  pleasant  dry  spot,  but  as  the  country 
round  about  is  extremely  open,  and  our  situation  high,  the 
winds  rather  incommode  us.  To  make  amends  they  scour  the 
camp  and  bring  us  a  constant  current  of  fresh  air.     The  General 

^  "John  Lafausille,  Lieut. -Col.  of  the  8th  (General  Wolfe's)  regiment  of  foot, 
was  promoted  to  the  colonelcy  of  the  66th  in  1768.  He  was  created  a  Major- 
General  in  1761,  and  died  on  his  voyage  home  from  Havana  in  1763." — Wright. 


AT  BLANDFORD   CAMP  301 

has  seen  the  Dragoons,  and  the  battalions  are  preparing  to  be 
received  one  after  another.  When  this  is  over  I  imagine  he  will 
proceed  to  another  business  more  to  the  purpose,  after  requiring 
such  alterations  and  improvements  in  the  private  discipline  of 
corps,  as  he  shall  think  needful.  There  is  a  great  scarcity  of 
gun  powder  in  the  camp,  so  that  'tis  like  we  shall  be  obliged  to 
do  business  without  noise.  The  Lt. -General  lives  about  3  miles 
off,  and  the  Major-General  about  5  ;  but  the  Duke  of  Bedford 
has  got  a  house  at  Blandford,  which  brings  him  within  a  mile 
and  a  half  of  the  army. 

There  is  good  care  taken  of  the  men  in  the  necessary  articles 
of  wood  and  straw,  bread  and  meat,  and  the  regiment  will  all  be 
new  clothed  very  soon.  We  have  hospitals  for  the  sick  in  the 
neighboiu-hood  of  the  camp,  a  physician  general  and  a  siu'geon 
to  inspect,  and  bedding  delivered  to  us  for  50  men  per  battalion. 
The  private  concerns  of  our  regiment  are  in  good  hands,  for  the 
Colonel  looks  into  matters  and  orders  every  thing  for  the  best. 
I  dare  believe  there  is  the  same  good  management  under  your 
Lt. -Colonel  who  is  an  example  of  care  and  diligence,  and  indeed 
all  the  commanders  of  corps  seem  to  attend  in  their  respective 
promises  to  the  maintenance  of  order  and  discipline.  So  much  for 
the  army ;  and  as  for  myself  this  sort  of  life  generally  agrees 
very  well  with  me,  and  I  am  much  better  in  health,  since  I  came 
into  the  open  air.  I  wish  you  and  my  mother  all  happiness,  I 
beg  my  duty  to  her,  and  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Mother. 

Blandford  Camp,  7  Aug.,  1756. 

Dear  Madam, — The  addition  of  a  battalion  to  every  Regiment 
of  Foot  ^  makes  room  for  little  Adeane  and  I  have  written  to 
remind  Lord  Albemarle  of  his  promise,  who  was  indeed  so 
obhging  as  to  offer  his  services  for  any  relation  or  friend  that  I 
was  desirous  of  providing  for  in  this  way.  I  have  confined  my 
request,  singly  to  this  point,  which  I  hope  will  ensure  his  success. 
You  must  send  (or  take  care  that  it  be  sent)  his  Christian  name 
to  Lord  Albemarle's  in  Bolton  Street  without  loss  of  time ; 
because  the  officers  will  be  named  immediately.  I  have  received 
a  letter  from  my  father  this  day  with  a  bad  account  of  your  health. 

^  By  a  War  Office  minute  25tli  August,  1756,  second  battalions  of  780  men 
each  were  to  be  added  to  fifteen  infantry  regiments.  These  battalions  after- 
wards became  regiments,  of  one  of  which,  as  we  shall  see,  Wolfe  got  the 
Colonelcy. 


302    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

As  the  gout  and  rheumatism  are  disorders  of  the  same  nature ; 
I  should  think  that  the  sage  wine  might  assist  you.  I  wish  with 
all  my  heart  that  anything  could  be  thought  of  for  your  benefit 
and  relief.  Pray  tell  the  General  that  I  recommend  one  of  his 
Lieutenants  to  him  upon  this  occasion.  Hamilton  deserves 
some  promotion. 

There  is  a  scheme  on  foot  to  provide  blankets  for  oiu*  men 
(since  the  Government  will  not  be  at  that  expense)  the  officers 
contribute  according  to  their  abilities — now  that  he  has  a 
battalion  added  to  his  Regiment  he  may  aiford  to  send  them 
twenty  guineas  for  that  purpose — other  Colonels  have  done  it, 
and  I  have  answered  for  him.  My  duty  to  the  General. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  W. 

PS.-^Little  Brown  ^  has  been  playing  the  very  devil,  I  must 
write  to  Tim  about  him. 

To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Blackheath. 

That  summer  England  had  a  distinguished  visitor  in  the  person 
of  the  Prince  of  Nassau,  who  went  about  examining  all  the  sights 
with  considerable  enthusiasm.  He  figured  as  the  guest  of  the 
Duke  of  Richmond  (whose  military  tutor  had  been  Guy  Carleton) 
who  placed  his  town  house  in  Whitehall  at  the  Prince's  disposal 
and  carrying  him  off  to  Newmarket,  Epsom  and  Goodwood.  A 
few  weeks  after  the  Prince''s  arrival  his  host  brought  him  down  to 
the  regiment  and  introduced  him  to  Wolfe,  for  whom  he  enter- 
tained a  high  opinion.  About  the  same  time  there  arrived  at 
Southampton  eight  regiments  of  Hessian  troops,  under  Count 
d''Isembourg.  We  are  told  that  they  made  "a  fine  appearance, 
being  generally  straight,  tall  and  slender.  Their  uniform  is  blue, 
turned  up  with  red  and  laced  with  white  ;  and  their  hair  plaited 
behind  hangs  down  to  the  waist."  ^  But  it  was  their  splendid 
discipline  which  attracted  Wolfe's  regard. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Winchester,  1*^  September,  1766. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  afraid  you  will  think  me  a  little  idle,  and 
be  still  more  convinced  of  it  when  you  see  my  letter  dated  from 

1  Timothy  Brett's  brother-in-law,  an  ensign. 

2  Scots  Magazine,  May  1766. 


WEAVERS'  RIOTS  803 

Winchester.     A  lieutenant-colonel  forty  miles  from  his  camp! 
What  caiTies  him  so  far  from  his  duty  ?     The  case  is  this  : — 
The  Prince  of  Nassau  is  going  away,  and  the  Duke  of  Richmond 
means  to  entertain  him  a  day  or  two  at  Goodwood  before  his 
departure,  and  we  see  the  Hessians  exercise  as  we  go  along.     The 
Duke  proposed  this  party  to  me,  and  undertook  to  get  the 
GeneraPs  leave.     There  was  too  much  pleasure  and  too  much 
honour  in  his  Grace's  oiFer  to  be  refused.     To-morrow  morning  I  ^''^^''^^ 
four  of  the  Hessian  battalions  and  some  artillery  exhibite  the  1^     y 
Prussian  discipline,  after  which  we  are  to  breakfast  with  Count ' 
d'Isembourg,  their  General,  and  dine  at  the  Duke  of  Richmond's, 
which  is  five-and-twenty  miles  from  hence. 

We  had  a  general  review  and  exercise  of  our  forces  yesterday 
upon  Blandford  Downs,  to  the  great  entertainment  of  the 
ignorant  spectators ;  though,  according  to  my  judgment,  we  do 
not  deserve  even  their  approbation.  There  are  officers  who  had 
the  presumption  and  vanity  to  applaud  our  operations,  bad  as 
they  were ;  but  I  hope  the  General  saw  our  defects,  and  will 
apply  a  speedy  remedy,  without  which  I  think  we  are  in 
imminent  danger  of  being  cut  to  pieces  in  our  first  encounter. 

We  have  some  suspicion  of  an  enterprise  in  embryo,  and  we 
conclude  that  it  will  be  in  a  warm  climate.  If  the  least  notice 
is  given  me,  I  shall  send  for  all  my  thin  clothes  and  linen.  The 
Duke  of  Richmond  talks  of  visiting  the  two  camps  in  Kent,  and 
he  will,  if  I  am  with  him,  do  us  the  honour  to  drink  a  dish  of 
tea  at  your  house.  He  has  expressed  a  desire  to  see  you ;  whence 
that  curiosity  arises  I  can't  imagine,  but  so  it  is.  I  send  you 
both  my  best  wishes. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Our  hero  got  a  brief  leave  of  absence  and  saw  his  parents  at 
Blackheath  during  September. 

In  the  following  month  came  news  of  an  outbreak  of  rioting  on 
the  part  of  the  Gloucestershire  weavers  which  alarmed  the  Govern- 
ment. Wolfe  received  orders  on  October  19  to  march  straightway 
with  six  companies — three  of  his  own  regiment  and  three  of  the 
Buffs — to  help  the  magistrates  suppress  the  disturbances. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Camp  near  Blandford^  19  Oct.,  1756. 

Dear  Sir, — The  regiments  who  have  the  longest  march  are 
by  our  management  the  longest  in  camp.     Here  are  two  military 


304    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

battalions  of  us,  up  to  our  knees  in  dirt,  while  our  comrades  are 
very  snug  in  their  quarters.  It  seems  the  Adjutant-general 
sent  orders  that  the  BufFs  and  our  regiment  should  remain  till 
an  answer  came  from  Lord  Howe  in  relation  to  the  barracks  at 
Plymouth,  and  they  omitted  to  give  Sir  John  Mordaunt  a  proper 
latitude  in  case  the  weather  was  such  as  made  it  necessary  to 
canton  the  men  in  this  neighbourhood,  so  that  by  his  exact  and 
literal  obedience  of  orders,  we  risk  the  greatest  damages,  and  are 
already  beginning  to  fall  sick. 

Lafausille  told  me  that  you  had  mentioned  my  mother's  care 
of  my  little  affair  in  a  letter  to  him,  for  which  I  am  extremely 
obliged  to  her,  and  hope  that  a  fair  wind  will  convey  them  soon 
to  Plymouth,  where  I  shall  pick  and  choose  which  I  think  may 
be  most  useful,  and  leave  the  rest  for  my  heirs  and  executors.^ 
My  duty  to  my  mother.  I  wish  you  both  the  best  of  health  and 
am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — Since  I  writ  my  letter,  orders  are  come  to  decamp,  and 
I  have  received  command  to  march  with  six  companies  into 
Gloucestershire,  to  assist  the  civil  power  in  suppressing  riots,  etc. 
I  have  three  companies  of  the  Buff's  and  three  of  our  own  ;  and 
I  march  to-morrow  morning. 

It  was  never  a  pleasant  task  to  a  soldier,  and  one  in  which  no 
honour  is  to  be  acquired,  unless  he  is  so  fortunate  as  to  attain  his 
ends  without  spilling  blood.  Otherwise,  in  a  country  like  England, 
the  "  whiff  of  grapeshot "  is  apt  to  put  a  stigma  upon  an  officer's 
character  not  easily  effaced. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Sodbury,  Sunday,  2Uh  October,  1766. 

Dear  Madam, — I  write  you  this  short  letter  to  inform  you 
that  the  Gloucestershire  weavers  and  I  are  not  yet  come  to  blows 
nor  do  I  believe  we  shall.  The  expedition  carries  me  a  little  out 
of  my  road  and  a  little  in  the  dirt,  but  I  believe  there  never  was 
a  more  harmless  piece  of  business,  for  I  have  men  enough  to  beat 
the  mob  of  all  England  collected.  I  hope  it  will  turn  out  a 
good  recruiting  party,  for  the  people  are  so  oppressed,  so  poor 
and  so  wretched,  that  they  will  perhaps  hazard  a  knock  on  the 

*  An  assortment  of  knives  and  silver  forks  and  spoons. 


HIS   NURSE'S   SONS  305 

pate  for  bread  and  clothes,  and  turn  soldiers  through  sheer 
necessity.  To-morrow  I  enter  the  enemy's  coimtry,  and  dispose 
my  troops  in  their  winter  quarters  ;  myself  to  a  straggling  dirty 
village,  over  the  ankles  in  mud.  Bad  accommodation  and  bad 
company  are  so  familiar  to  me,  that  I  am  almost  in  danger  of 
losing  the  taste  of  anything  better.  You'll  be  pleased  to  send 
my  baggage  to  Plymouth  as  before  desired,  for  I  hope  to  get 
there  time  enough  to  look  over  it  before  we  set  sail  to  retake  St. 
Philip's  or  to  seize  the  isle  of  Corsica  for  our  use. 

My  nurse's  sons  ^  were  two  of  the  finest  soldiers  in  the  camp 
at  Shroton.  Richard  has  behaved  so  well  that  he  has  hopes  of 
preferment ;  the  other  is  an  exceedingly  able  fellow,  and  strong 
as  ten  common  men.  I  furnished  them  for  their  march  to 
Plymouth,  and  gave  them  hopes  of  many  good  things  in  the 
profession.  You  must  direct  for  me  at  Stroud  in  Gloucestershire 
and  you  must  tell  me  how  you  are,  and  what  is  doing  in  your 
neighbourhood.  London,  I  reckon,  will  soon  be  in  an  uproar. 
You  are  happy  that  you  are  out  of  the  noise  of  the  populace, 
and  out  of  the  smoke  of  the  city.  When  is  the  imhappy 
Admiral  ^  to  be  judged  ?  When  does  he  offer  an  apology  for  the 
loss  of  St.  Philip's,  excuse  himself,  or  pay  the  forfeit  of  his  life 
for  that  inestimable  fortress  ?  I,  who  never  read  the  news,  never 
know  what  is  doing,  and  my  correspondents  seem  to  have 
intelligence  proportioned  to  my  curiosity.  Pray  tell  the  General  i 
that  I  triumph  in  the  King  of  Prussia's  success.^  This  was  to  ' 
have  been  a  short  letter,  and  if  you  knew  what  noise  and  what 
companions  fill  the  room,  you  would  wonder  that  it  was  other- 
wise. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Mother. 

Stroud,  November  J  1756. 
Dear  Madam, — Very  little  society,  and  no  amusement  but 
walking  or  riding,  forces  me  to  be  troublesome  to  you.  The 
shortest  of  the  two  gun-cases  contains  a  little  gun  for  the  woods  : 
may  I  ask  the  favour  of  you  to  send  the  gun-case  to  the  "  George  " 
upon  Snow  Hill  directed  to  me  at  Stroud,  in  Gloucestershire ; 
the  other  I  desire  might  go  to  Plymouth  with  my  baggage 

1  Richard  and  William  Hooper  of  Westerham  (see  p.  8). 

2  Byng. 

2  The  victory  over  the  Austrians    under  Marshal  Brown  at  Lowositz,  in 
Bohemia,  1st  October,  1756. 

X 


306    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

The  obstinacy  of  the  poor,  half-starved  weavers  of  broad-cloth 
that  inhabit  this  extraordinary  country  is  surprising.  They  beg 
about  the  country  for  food,  because,  they  say,  the  masters  have 
beat  down  their  wages  too  low  to  live  upon,  and  I  believe  it  is  a 
just  complaint.  Those  who  are  most  oppressed  have  seized  the 
tools,  and  broke  the  looms  of  others  that  would  work  if  they  could. 
I  am  afraid  they  will  proceed  to  some  extravagancies,  and  force 
the  magistrates  to  use  our  weapons  against  them,  which  would 
give  me  a  great  deal  of  concern.  The  face  of  this  country  is 
different  from  anything  that  I  have  seen  in  England.  Number- 
less little  hills,  little  rivulets  running  in  all  the  bottoms  ;  the 
lower  parts  of  the  hills  are  generally  grass,  the  middle  corn,  and 
the  upper  part  wood,  and  innumerable  little  white  houses  in  all 
the  vales,  so  that  there  is  a  vast  variety  ;  and  every  mile  changes 
the  scene,  and  gives  you  a  new  and  pleasant  prospect.  The  poor 
people  in  this  neighbourhood  are  vastly  well  affected,  further  off" 
they  are  as  ill ;  but  their  chief,  the  Duke  of  Beaufort,  is,  I  hear, 
upon  the  point  of  death,  which  will  probably  disconcert  the 
faction.^ 

The  public  papers  seem  to  have  taken  a  turn  in  favour  of  our 
Admiral ;  but  I,  who  am  an  eye-witness  of  the  consequences  of 
his  fatal  conduct,  shall  never  be  brought  to  soften  towards  him. 
If  he  did  not  personally  engage  through  fear,  or  declined  it 
through  treachery ;  or  if  he  went  out  with  instructions  not  to  be 
too  forward  in  relieving  Minorca,  he  deserves  ten  thousand  deaths. 
An  English  Admiral  who  accepts  of  such  instructions  should 
lose  his  head  ;  but,  alas !  our  affairs  are  falling  down  apace. 
This  country  is  going  fast  upon  its  ruin,  by  the  paltry  projects 
and  more  ridiculous  execution  of  those  who  are  entrusted. 
Remember  how  often  I  have  pressed  upon  for  your  security,  how 
I  have  warned  my  father  of  the  hazards  and  precarious  state  of 
our  public  funds.  I  have  done  my  duty  to  you  in  that  respect, 
and  will  do  it  in  every  other  if  it  should  hereafter  become 
necessary,  and  I  live  and  have  it  in  my  power. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

There  was  a  member  of  Mrs.  Wolfe's  household  who  had 
mortally  offended  Wolfe  by  his  insinuations  long  before  against  his 
inamorata,  Miss  Lawson,  and  other  incidents  had  lately  occurred  to 

1  He  died  October  28,  1756.  The  faction  was  the  Jacobites,  of  which 
the  Duke  was  the  head. 


HIS   SENSE   OF  JUSTICE  307 

stir  up  his  resentment.  He  therefore  wrote  this  person  whom  he 
had  denominated  "  Jezebel,"  a  sharp  letter  for  which  he  now 
expresses  condign  repentance. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Stroud,  13  Nw.y  1756. 
Dear  Madam, — I  should  account  myself  little  less  than  a 
barbarian,  if  I  wilfully,  designedly,  added  anything  to  the 
great  misery  that  you  are  forced  almost  every  day  to  undergo. 
My  duty  forbids  me  to  increase  your  misfortunes,  and  I  am  not 
in  my  nature  disposed  to  plague  and  torment  people,  and  more 
especially  those  I  love.  My  temper  is  much  too  warm,  and 
sudden  resentment  forces  out  expressions  and  even  actions  that 
are  neither  justifiable  nor  excusable,  and  perhaps  I  do  not  correct 
that  natural  heat  so  much  as  I  ought  to  do  ;  but  you  must  have 
observed  that  people  are  apt  to  resent  what  they,  at  first  view, 
(and  often  inadvisedly)  take  for  injuries,  with  more  than  comon 
quickness,  when  they  come  from  an  unexpected  quarter.  With 
regard  to  myself  you  must  leave  to  time  and  exerted  reason  for 
the  correction  of  those  errors  and  vices,  which  may  at  present 
prevail  most  against  sense  and  judgement — pointing  them  out 
in  the  gentlest  and  friendliest  manner,  and  by  that  means  help 
to  weaken  and  to  destroy  them.  I  have  that  cursed  disposition 
of  mind,  (the  worst  quality  that  can  seize  the  heart  of  man,  and 
the  devil's  great  assistant)  that,  when  I  once  know  that  people 
have  entertained  a  very  ill  opinion  I  imagine  they  never  change  ; 
from  whence  one  passes  easily  to  an  indifference  about  them,  and 
then  to  dislike  ;  and  though  I  flatter  myself  that  I  have  a 
sense  of  justice  strong  enough  to  keep  me  from  doing  >vrong, 
even  to  an  enemy,  yet  there  lurks  a  hidden  poison  in  the  heart 
that  is  difficult  to  root  out.  However  in  this  respect  Satan  is 
disappointed  for  I  have  been  so  long  used  to  love  and  esteem  you 
in  gratitude  for  your  good  offices,  and  still  more  in  consideration 
of  the  many  excellent  qualities  that  you  are  possessed  of,  that  it 
must  be  a  very  great  change  indeed  on  your  side,  that  could 
weaken  my  affection  for  you.  Now  and  then  I  think  myself  for- 
got— but  still  attribute  it  to  some  unhappy  cause  of  health,  and 
wish  it  better.  Compassion  alone  for  your  sufferings  (if  all  other 
motives  were  dead)  ought  to  make  me  calm  under  your  reproofs, 
if  they  were  ever  so  severe  ;  and  may  be,  if  I  only  pitied  yom- 
condition,  without  any  mixture  of  affection,  I  should  be  more 
so.     It  is  my  misfortune  to  catch  fire  on  a  sudden,  to  answer 

X  2 


308    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

letters  the  moment  I  receive  them,  when  they  touch  me  sensibly ; 
and  to  suffer  passion  to  dictate  my  expression  more  than  reason. 
The  next  day  perhaps  would  have  changed  more  still,  and  carried 
more  moderation  with  it ;  every  ill  turn  through  my  whole  life 
has  had  this  haste,  and  first  impulse  of  resentment  for  its  true 
cause,  and  it  proceeds  from  pride — I  am  too  much  affected  with 
your  letter  to  leave  you  a  moment  in  doubt  about  my  inclina- 
tions, which  you  may  be  assured  are  always  tending  affection- 
ately towards  you  and  which  do  in  reality  make  your  ease  and 
quiet  and  welfare  of  consideration  greater  than  any  concern  of 
my  own,  and  I  can  safely  say,  that  I  have  always  had  your  well 
being  much  more  sincerely  at  heart,  than  my  own  interest,  and 
am  pleased  to  find  in  myself  so  much  merit  in  my  love  and 
regard  for  you,  so  well  deserving  it  at  my  hands.  I  beg  my 
duty  to  my  father,  and  am 
Dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — I  have  reason  to  believe  that  oiu'  Regiment  will  march 
very  soon  from  Plymouth  into  this  country  ;  therefore,  if  the 
baggage  is  not  gone,  I  beg  you  will  keep  it,  till  we  know  more. 

To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Blackheath. 

We  have  already  seen  the  strength  of  Wolfe's  friendship  for  the 
Hon.  Edward  Cornwallis,  who  had  been  his  predecessor  in  the 
Lieutenant-Colonelcy.  Just  at  present  that  officer  was  enjoying 
much  public  disfavour  for  having,  while  serving  at  Gibraltar, 
joined  in  the  resolution  of  the  Council  of  War  presided  over  by  the 
governor,  Lieutenant-General  Fowke,  not  to  send  a  battalion  to  help 
the  ill-fated  Admiral  Byng.  Horace  Walpole  wrote  :  "  By  all  one 
learns  Byng,  Fowke  and  all  the  officers  at  Gibraltar  were  infatuated. 
They  figured  Port  Mahon  lost  and  Gibraltar  a-going !  a-going ! 
Lord  Effingham,  Cornwallis,  Lord  Robert  Bertie  all — all  signed  the 
council  of  war  and  are  in  as  bad  odour  as  possible.  The  King  says 
it  will  be  his  death  and  neither  eats  nor  sleeps, — all  our  trust  is  in 
the  Hanoverians." 

Of  the  court-martial  which  tried  Fowke,  the  old  General, 
Wolfe's  father,  was  a  member.  The  governor  was  suspended  for  a 
year  and  then  dismissed  from  the  King's  service — a  severe  punish- 
ment, but  mild  as  compared  with  that  meted  out  to  Byng.     But 


EDWARD   CORNWALLIS  309 

Wolfe  firmly  stood  by  his  friend  Cornwallis  in  his  disgrace,  writing 
thus  to  his  father  at  a  time  when  an  investigation  into  Fowke's 
associates  was  pending — 


To  HIS  Father. 
Dear  Sir, — 


Stroud,  2*Jth  November ,  1766. 


I  don't  suppose  there  is  a  man  living  more  to  be  pitied 
than  poor  Cornwallis.  As  he  has  more  zeal,  more  merit, 
and  more  integrity  than  one  commonly  meets  with  among 
men,  he  will  be  proportionally  mortified  to  find  himself  in  dis- 
grace, with  the  best  intention  to  deserve  favour.  I  am  heartily 
sorry  to  find  him  involved  with  the  rest,  of  whose  abilities  or 
inclinations  nobody  has  any  very  high  notions  ;  but  Cornwallis  is 
a  man  of  approved  courage  and  fidelity.  He  has,  unhappily,  been 
misled  upon  this  ocasion  by  people  of  not  half  his  value. 

I  am,  dear  sir, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe's  view  of  Comwallis's  behaviour  was  that  eventually 
taken  by  the  authorities,  and  his  friend  came  out  of  the  ordeal  not 
merely  unscathed  but  so  far  improved  in  position  that  he  was 
advanced  a  grade  in  the  service  and  in  February  was  gazetted  a 
Major-General. 

Wolfe's  own  promotion  occasionally  occupied  his  thoughts,  and 
his  temper  just  now  does  not  appear  to  have  been  improved  by  the 
mission  he  had  concluded  in  the  West.  He  wanted  to  serve 
against  England's  enemies  abroad  and  was  only  considered  good 
enough  to  put  down  a  weaver's  brawl  in  Gloucestershire.  In  the 
next  letter  the  clannishness  which  distinguished  the  Wolfes  and 
himself  in  particular  is  brought  out  by  his  references  to  his  cousin 
Goldsmith's  impending  bereavement.  Captain  Goldsmith  and  he 
corresponded  regularly. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Stroud,  Qth  December y  1766. 

Dear  Madam, — I  attribute  it  in  some  measure  to  the  nature 
of  my  employment  as  well  as  to  the  condition  of  my  blood, 
being  everlasting  chagrined  with  the  ill  actions  of  the  people 
about  me,  and  in  the  constant  exercise  of  power  to  pimish  and 
rebuke.  I  pass  so  much  of  my  time  at  quarters,  and  am  so 
Jct^nt  upon   having  everything  done  in  its  proper  way,  that 


310    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

those  aids  which  are  equality  of  society,  the  conversation  of 
women,  and  the  wholesome  advice  of  friends  are  known  to  give 
to  minds  of  my  cast,  are  totally  cut  off  from  me  and  denied  ; 
and  if  I  was  to  serve  two  or  three  years  in  America,  I  make  no 
doubt  that  I  should  be  distinguished  by  a  peculiar  fierceness  of 
temper  suited  to  the  nature  of  that  war.  I  don't  know  whether 
a  man  had  better  fall  early  into  the  hands  of  those  savages,  than 
be  converted  by  degrees  into  their  nature  and  forget  humanity. 

It  may  happen  that  a  second  battalion  of  those  regiments 
may  have  colonels  appointed  to  them  without  including  your 
son  in  the  number.  A  man  who  never  asks  a  favour  will  hardly 
ever  obtain  it.  I  persuade  myself  they  will  put  no  inferior 
officers  (unless  a  peer)  over  my  head,  in  which  case  I  can't  com- 
plain, not  being  able  to  say  that  I  have  ever  done  more  than  my 
duty,  and  happy  if  I  came  up  to  that.  If  any  soldier  is  preferred 
when  my  turn  comes,  I  shall  acquaint  the  Secretary  of  War  that 
I  am  sensible  of  the  injury  that  is  done  me,  and  will  take  the 
earliest  opportunity  to  put  it  out  of  his  or  any  man's  power  to 
repeat  it.  Not  while  the  war  lasts  ;  for  if  500  young  officers  one 
after  another  were  to  rise  before  me  I  should  continue  to  serve 
with  the  utmost  diligence,  to  acquit  myself  to  the  country,  and  to 
show  the  Ministers  that  they  had  acted  unjustly.  But  I  flatter 
myself  that  I  shall  never  be  forced  to  these  disagreeable  measures. 

I  don't  believe  that  Mrs.  Goldsmith  is  dead,  but  dying. 
They  are  still  at  Kinsale,  because  she  is  not  able  to  move  ;  for 
her  desire  was  to  be  carried  to  die  amongst  her  own  relations. 
My  cousin,  whose  good  nature  and  gratitude  are  such  that  he  can 
refuse  nothing  to  a  wife  that  he  thinks  deserves  everything  at 
his  hands,  had  agreed  to  carry  her  to  Limerick ;  but  she  had  not 
strength  for  the  journey,  and  I  expect  to  hear  every  day  that 
she  is  at  rest.  I  am  afraid  poor  Goldsmith  has  been  obliged  to 
call  in  some  expensive  assistance,  and  therefore  conclude  that  a 
present  from  the  General  would  be  acceptable.  He  has  distin- 
guished himself  by  a  most  considerable  regard  for  the  poorer 
branches  of  his  family,  for  which,  I  make  no  doubt,  but  that  he 
himself  will  be  considered.  All  mankind  are  indeed  our  relations 
and  have  nearly  an  equal  claim  to  pity  and  assistance ;  but 
those  of  our  own  blood  call  most  immediately  upon  us.  One  of 
the  principal  reasons  that  induces  me  to  wish  myself  at  the  head 
of  a  regiment  is,  that  I  may  execute  my  father's  plan  while  there 
remains  one  indigent  person  of  his  race. 

Kingsley's  and  its  Lieutenant-Colonel  was  soon  off  to  Ciren- 


MENTIONED  AT  COURT  311 

cester,  where  it  became  quartered  for  some  months.  While  here  he 
learnt  that  his  firm  friend,  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  when  summoned  to 
the  Royal  closet,  took  an  opportunity  to  represent  to  his  Majesty 
Wolfe's  claims  to  a  vacant  colonelcy  or  at  least  to  employment  in 
a  post  of  honour.  This  was  probably  not  the  only  quarter  in 
which  old  King  George  heard  the  young  officer's  praises  sung. 
Wolfe's  reputation  was  growing  fast.  There  was  now  hardly  a 
quarter  of  the  kingdom  where  he  had  not  made  himself  known  in 
the  course  of  his  profession  and  generally  loved. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Cirencesterj  26th  December y  1756. 
Dear  Madam, — 

The  letter  you  enclosed  was  from  my  cousin.  His  wife 
declines  apace  ;  her  illness  gives  him  great  concern  and  I  believe 
may  have  distressed  him  in  his  narrow  circumstances.  If  my 
father  would  send  him  some  assistance  it  might  be  a  timely 
relief.  I  don't  know  what  the  poor  man  will  do  ;  when  his  wife 
dies,  he  loses  £¥)  a  year  of  his  income.  I  have  no  house  to 
offer  him  for  shelter  or  I  should  be  entirely  at  his  service, 
because  I  think  him  to  be  an  even-tempered  honest  man. 

Sir  John  Mordaunt,  who  has  been  in  with  the  King,  took  that 
opportunity  to  recommend  me  in  the  strongest  terms  to  his 
Majesty.  I  did  not  ask  this  of  Sir  John  and  therefore  am  the 
more  obliged  to  him  ;  but  I  don't  expect  it  will  produce  much, 
because  by  the  King's  rule  my  turn  has  not  yet  come.  .  .  .  The 
disagreement  between  Blakeney  ^  and  Jeffreys  is  unfortunate  for 
both  ;  it  is  an  old  quarrel  revived  and  will  produce  no  good.  We 
military  men  are  not  so  much  in  love  with  the  defence  of  St. 
Philips  as  the  mob  of  London.  We  think  there  appeared  no 
great  degree  of  skill,  nor  the  most  shining  courage.  I  wish  you 
better  health  and  a  more  comfortable  time  than  the  past. 
My  duty  to  my  Father, 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

Cirencester,  Dec.  30, 1756. 
Dear  Madam, — By  the  arrival  of  my  baggage  I  am  enabled 
to  send  you  a  very  good  receipt  for  the  gravel.     If  the  oil  does 
not  offend  the  stomach — it  can  have  no  ill  effects. 

1  ''  The  King  of  his  own  motion  has  given  a  red  riband  and  an  Irish  barony 
to  old  Blakeney — who  .  .  .  has  not  only  lost  his  government,  but  was  bed- 
rid while  it  was  losing." — Walpole's  Letters,  November  29,  1756. 


312    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Receipt. 
An  ounce  of  oil  of  sweet  almonds, 
An  ounce  of  Syrup  of  Marsh  Mallows  in  a 
large  glass  of  Rhenish  wine. 

Short  ^  in  Jermyn  Street  has  genuine  Rhenish. 
I  wish  it  may  succeed  with  you.     I  found  great  relief  at 
Southampton  by  the  use  of  it.     I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father  and 
am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

1  Short,  the  wine-merchant,  was  a  character  in  his  day.  He  is  said  to 
have  once  sent  a  dozen  of  Rhenish  to  Oliver  Goldsmith  on  account  of  his 
having  written  The  Vicar  of  Wakefield. 


XIV 

THE    ROCHEFORT    EXPEDITION 

For  six  months  the  war  had  dragged  along,  and  for  that  period 
of  time  had  been  disastrous  to  England. 

Not  imtil  the  accession  of  Pitt  to  power  did  the  government 
begin  to  be  informed  by  any  real  knowledge  or  be  animated  by  a 
single  purpose.  But  the  amount  of  opposition  Pitt  had  to 
encounter  from  the  King  and  the  Newcastle  cabal  was  too  much 
even  for  his  patriotism — far  too  much  for  his  pride.  He  came  in 
in  December :  he  went  out  in  April  following.  But  in  those  few 
months  he  demonstrated  clearly  to  the  reasoning  and  loyal  part  of 
the  nation  that  he  was  as  he  described  himself,  the  one  man  upon 
whom  in  its  extremity  they  could  rely.  England,  he  had  said,  was 
no  place  for  foreign  mercenaries ;  so,  while  in  office,  he  had  sent  the 
Hessians  from  English  soil.  Englishmen  must  learn  to  rely  on 
themselves  ;  a  defensive  militia  was  organized  and  fostered.  If 
foreigners  were  to  be  hired  at  all,  they  should  serve  far  afield 
against  the  enemy  in  America.  Recruiting  had  been  prosecuted 
with  energy. 

There  was  another  neglected  source  of  military  strength  which 
Pitt  resolved  should  be  drawn  upon.  The  keen  eye  of  the  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  of  the  Twentieth  had  noted  long  since  the  advantage  of 
using  the  fine  fighting  qualities  of  the  Highlanders  and  had  pressed 
the  suggestion  at  head-quarters.  The  Highland  clans  were  now 
organized  into  line  regiments  who  could  satisfy  their  martial 
instincts  to  their  heart's  content  by  fighting  for  instead  of  against 
their  sovereign. 

The  year  before  (in  May  1756)  a  plan  for  conducting  the  war 
was  submitted  to  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  who  when  Pitt  came  into 
office  sent  it  to  that  statesman.  The  author  of  the  scheme  sug- 
gested that  two  battalions  of  1000  men  each  might  readily  be 
raised  in  the  Highlands  for  service  in  America,  if  offers  of  land 
grants  at  the  close  of  the  war  were  made.  Pitt  adopted  the  idea 
instantly  and  its  success  more  than  justified  his  promptitude. 

Now,  who  was  the  author  of  this  scheme  ?  Wright  was  the 
first  to  point  out  the  probability  of  its  being  Wolfe.  All  we  know 
is  that  the  paper  was  delivered  to  Pitt  by  the  Earl  of  Albemarle. 

313 


314    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

The  Earl  was  none  other  than  the  Lord  Bury,  Colonel  of  Wolfe's 
regiment  while  in  Scotland.  Bury''s  knowledge  of  the  Highlands 
and  the  disposition  of  the  Highlanders  was  of  the  scantiest, 
other  than  that  which  he  received  from  his  Lieutenant-Colonel ; 
for  during  the  whole  time  the  Twentieth  was  quartered  in  the 
north  he  paid  it  but  a  couple  of  hasty  visits.  But  we  do  know 
that  Wolfe  wrote  him  copious  letters,  and  we  know  also  that 
Wolfe's  alert  mind  would  certainly  have  transmitted  his  views  on 
this  matter  to  his  superior.^ 

Amongst  Wolfe's  friends  was  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  who  was  now 
Lord-Lieutenant  of  Ireland.  Bedford  had  long  been  on  intimate 
terms  with  Lieutenant-General  Wolfe,  who  for  some  reason  or 
other  was  always  anxious  to  get  his  son  on  the  Irish  establishment. 
The  posts  of  Barrackmaster-General  and  Quartermaster- General 
of  Ireland  which  had  been  held  by  Lord  Forbes  became  vacant  on 
that  officer's  death.  It  was  customary  to  look  somewhat  higher 
than  Wolfe's  rank  when  bestowing  a  post  of  such  importance  as 
either.  But  Bedford  wished  to  show  in  the  strongest  manner  his 
appreciation  of  Wolfe's  qualities.  He  therefore  offered,  through 
his  secretary,  Rigby,  both  these  appointments  to  the  young  officer, 
stating  his  belief  that  the  King  would  grant  their  recipient  the 
customary  rank  of  Colonel.  Wolfe  got  the  letter  on  February  6, 
and  his  letter  to  his  father  the  same  day  shows  the  touchy  state  of 
his  mind  with  regard  to  the  obstructions  placed  in  his  path  in  high 
quarters. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Cirencester,  Qth  February,  1767. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  writ  to  thank  the  Duke  for  the  favour 
with  which  he  is  pleased  to  honour  me  ;  I  have  told  him  that 
although  it  is  an  office,  quite  out  of  the  course  of  my  practice, 
nevertheless  I  shall  endeavour  to  execute  it  properly  by  a  strict 
and  exact  obedience  to  his  directions  and  commands.  But  I  shall 
give  it  up  immediately  and  come  back  to  the  battalion,  if  the 

(rank  of  Colonel  is  omitted ;  and  I  had  rather  see  the  King  of 
Prussia's   operations   the   next   campaign   than   accept   of  this 

1  ''It  is  at  least  a  curious  coincidence,"  observes  Wright/' that  Wolfe's  words 
are  equivalent  to  the  final  sentence  of  that  portion  of  the  above-mentioned 
scheme  which  relates  to  the  matter  in  hand  : — '  No  men  in  this  island  are 
better  qualified  for  the  American  war  than  the  Scots  Highlanders.'  The  issue 
proved  the  truth  of  the  assertion.  If  Wolfe  did  not  incite  this  military- 
measure,  it  is  remarkable  that  he  should  have  foreshadowed  it,  as  well  as  the 
establishment  of  county  constabulary  upon  a  constitutional  basis." 


AN  IRISH  APPOINTMENT  315 

employment  with  all  its  advantages.  As  the  matter  is  not  yet 
completed,  I  believe  'tis  better  not  to  speak  of  it,  lest  his  Majesty 
should  think  proper  to  refuse. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc. 

He  soon  was  given  to  understand  that  the  Duke  had  been  pre- 
vailed upon  to  give  the  separated  office  of  Barrackmaster-General 
to  some  one  else.  This  did  not  disturb  him ;  provided  he  could 
procure  the  coveted  colonelcy,  he  was  inclined  to  fall  in  with  his 
parents'*  wishes  and  accept  the  post.  But  he  did  not  disguise  from 
them  that  the  prospect  by  no  means  satisfied  his  soul.  He  was 
"  too  much  of  a  soldier  to  desire  anything  but  military  employ- 
ment," even  putting  down  weavers'  riots  or  building  Highland 
roads. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Cirencester,  February  IQthy  1757. 

Dear  Sir, — As  I  have  no  franks  I  am  obliged  to  put  you 
to  the  expense  of  a  double  letter,  to  enclose  one  that  I  received 
this  morning  from  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  in  so  obliging  and 
flattering  a  style  that  I  should  not  be  ready  to  show  it  to 
anybody  else.  But  as  the  matter  concerns  what  I  formally 
mentioned  to  you,  it  will  be  the  best  means  of  letting  you  see 
what  steps  have  been  taken,  as  well  as  what  success  has  attended 
them.  You'll  observe  that  the  Duke  makes  no  mention  of  the 
employment  of  Barrackmaster-General,  which  I  am  not  sorry  for, 
wishing  rather  that  they  might  be  separated  from  each  other 
upon  this  occasion.  I  won't  trouble  you  with  all  that  I  have  said 
to  the  Duke  of  Bedford  and  Lord  Albemarle,  but  only  in  general 
that  I  have  conformed  to  their  sentiments  in  accepting  the  offer. 
I  am  far  from  being  pleased  with  it  otherwise  than  as  a  mark  of 
the  Duke's  friendship  and  good  opinion,  being  too  much  of  a 
soldier  to  desire  any  but  military  employment,  which  this  can 
hardly  be  reckoned. 

I  am,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

On  the  same  day  he  wrote  the  following  to  the  Lord-Lieutenant — 

To  THE  Duke  of  Bedford. 

Cirencester,  February  19th,  1757- 
My  Lord, — ^The  honour  your  Grace  has  done  me,  and  the 
particvdar  obligations  you  have  conferred  upon  me,  leave  me 


316     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

no  choice  how  to  act.  That  which  is  most  agreeable  to  your 
Grace  must  determine  me,  and  I  should  be  extremely  pleased  to 
have  it  in  my  power  to  convince  your  Grace,  by  an  exact  obedi- 
ence to  your  commands,  that  I  wish  to  make  myself  more  worthy 
of  your  protection.  I  am  very  sensible  that  there  are  many 
gentlemen  upon  the  list  whose  pretensions  are  a  check  on  mine, 
and  some  of  such  distinguished  merit  that  I  neither  desire,  nor 
could  hope,  to  be  preferred  before  them.  The  only  circumstance 
that  could  at  all  lessen  my  satisfaction  on  this  occasion  is,  to  be 
in  some  measure  distinguished  from  the  officers  who  have  held 
this  employment  before  by  a  rank  inferior  to  theirs,  and  which 
seemed  to  be  annexed  to  the  office.  Such  services  as  your  Grace 
may  expect  from  the  best  inclinations,  I  venture  to  assure  you 
of;  and,  as  I  am  ready  to  receive  and  follow  your  Grace's 
directions,  they  will  be  the  best  and  surest  rules  for  my  conduct. 
The  moment  the  officers  of  this  country  and  of  the  regiments 
will  permit,  which  I  hope  will  be  early  in  the  next  month, 
I  shall  pay  my  respects  to  your  Grace  in  town.  With  all 
possible  acknowledgments  for  these  marks  of  your  favourable 
opinion, 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  etc., 

James  Wolfe.  ^ 

Wolfe"'s   patriotism  was  certainly  of  an  unusual   sort,  as  the 
following  letter  testifies. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

23rrf  February y  1757. 

Dear  Madam, — I  write  you  upon  a  very  particular  subject. 
There  is  reason  to  think  that  the  Spaniards  will  make  war  upon 
us,  and  of  course  that  the  public  expenses  will  greatly  increase 
as  well  as  the  danger.  My  desire  therefore  is,  that  you  will 
interest  yourself  in  behalf  of  the  public  as  becomes  a  virtuous, 
good,  disinterested  lady,  and  that  you  will  endeavour  to  persuade 
the  General  to  contribute  all  he  can  possibly  affi3rd  towards  the 
defence  of  the  island, — retrenching,  if  need  be,  his  expenses, 
moderate  as  they  are.  I  would  have  him  engage  in  lotteries 
and  all  schemes  for  raising  money,  because  I  believe  they  are 
honestly  intended;  and  though  he  should  be  considerably  a 
loser,  the  motive  of  his  actions  will  overbalance  his  losses.  Let 
the  General  keep  a  little  ready  money  by  him  for  his  own  use 

^  Bedford  Correspondence j  vol.  ii.  p.  239. 


AN   UNFORTUNATE   INCIDENT     317 

and  yours  and  with  the  rest,  if  he  has  it,  assist  the  State ;  nay, 
I  should  go  so  far  as  to  advise  him  to  lend  three  or  four  thousand 
pounds  to  the  Government  without  any  interest  at  all,  or  give 
it,  since  it  is  the  savings  of  his  salaries  and  the  reward  of  his 
services.     Excuse  this  freedom.^     I  beg  my  duty  to  the  General. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Father. 

London,  Vlth  March,  1757- 

Dear  Sir, — There  are  rumours  of  a  change  of  Ministry.  In 
this  fluctuating  state  of  affairs  military  operations  must  be 
neglected  in  the  contention  of  parties.  I  believe  it  is  pretty 
certain  (though  not  yet  declared)  that  H.R.H.  the  Duke  will 
command  the  army  in  Westphalia,  and,  as  there  is  a  greater 
probability  of  service  there  than  here,  I  have  desired  my  Lord 
Albemarle  to  get  me  leave  to  attend  his  Royal  Highness,  and  I 
have  some  prospect  of  succeeding.  This  I  am  persuaded  you 
will  approve  of,  from  the  advantages  to  be  reaped  from  an  active 
campaign.  There  appears  to  be  so  general  an  opposition  to 
sending  any  of  our  troops  abroad,  that  I  imagine  they  will  have 
no  share  of  the  great  war  which  is  now  carrying  on  upon  the 
Continent.  If  my  mother  will  let  me  know  the  hour  she  will 
take  me  up  in  her  chariot  at  the  bridge  on  Wednesday  next,  I 
shall  be  ready  to  wait  upon  her  to  Blackheath ;  and  if  she  does 
not  care  to  come  herself,  only  signify  your  pleasure  as  to  sending 
the  chariot  and  I  shall  be  at  my  post. 

Crabbed  in  temper  as  she  was,  Mrs.  Wolfe  was  dotingly  fond 
of  her  brilliant  son  and  resolved  to  meet  him  at  the  bridge.  The 
appointed  day  arrives ;  it  is  bitterly  cold  and  a  blizzard  is  blowing. 
Nothing  loath  the  good  lady  bundles  out  of  bed,  mounts  her  coach, 
and  drives  ten  miles  to  Westminster  bridge.  Her  son  is  not  there. 
She  waits  there  three  hours,  until  she  nearly  perishes  with  the  cold, 
and  then  with  thin  lips  and  blazing  eyes  orders  the  coachman  to 
drive  back  to  Blackheath.  It  appears  James  had  written  to 
countermand  the  carriage,  but  his  letter  had  arrived  too  late. 

1  "Far  from  being  absorbed  in  his  own  worldly  welfare^  our  hero  was  deeply 
interested  in  everything  that  concerned  the  State.  Instead  of  heaping  up 
riches,  as  he  now  had  the  opportunity  of  doing,  it  seems  to  have  been  his 
highest  ambition  to  spend  and  be  spent  in  the  service  of  his  country." — 
Wright. 


818    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Sunday  Eve,  27  March,  1757. 
Dear  Madam, — I  did  hope  that  my  letter  would  get  to 
Blackheath  time  enough  to  prevent  the  chariot's  coming  for  me, 
and  I  couldn't  conceive  that  you  yourself  would  venture  out  such 
a  day — but  Mr.  Fisher  told  me  you  waited  God  knows  how  long 
in  the  cold,  which  I  was  exceedingly  sorry  to  hear.  I  won't 
trouble  you  any  more  about  the  chariot,  for  fear  of  such  another 
accident,  and  as  the  ceremony  of  kissing  hands  takes  up  a  deal 
of  time,  I  hope  before  it  is  over,  the  weather  will  soften,  so  as  to 
admit  of  some  navigation  upon  the  Thames. 

I  hear  no  kind  of  news,  because  I  never  ask  for  any,  nor  ever 
know  what  is  doing.     My  duty  to  my  father,  I  am,  dear  Madam, 
Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Blackheath. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Monday,  28  March,  1757. 

Dear  Sir, — I  am  heartily  sorry  that  I  am  not  at  liberty  to 
wait  upon  you  next  Wednesday,  and  that  I  did  not  know  of  your 
being  in  town  till  'twas  too  late  to  see  you. 

The  Duke's  leg  is  inflamed,^  and  he  is  for  the  present  confined. 
I  shall  kiss  the  King's  hand  tomorrow  for  my  new  office. 
My  duty  to  my  mother, 
I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
To  Lieut.-Gen.  Wolfe, 
Blackheath,  Kent. 

On  Tuesday,  March  29,  amongst  the  throng  at  the  royal  levee 
at  St.  James's  was  the  figure  of  the  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the 
Twentieth  Regiment.  At  the  same  ceremony,  separated  by  two 
or  three  notabilities,  one  of  whom  was  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  there 
stood  the  minister  who  ere  many  months  had  passed  was  to  take 
the  destinies  of  his  country  into  his  hands.  Out  of  this  roomful 
of  peers,  statesmen  and  soldiers,  there  were  two  men  who  loved 
England  superlatively  and  longed  to  serve  her,  filled  with  fervour, 
with  ambition.  In  this  Lieutenant-Colonel  twenty  years  his  junior, 
Pitt  the  statesman  was  to  find  a  soldier  who  would  be  a  worthy 

^  The  Duke  of  Cumberland  became  corpulent  to  an  unwieldy  degree  at  an 
early  age  and  also  suffered  from  varicose  veins. 


PITT  AGAIN   IN  POWER  319 

instrument  to  his  ends.  Old  George  II,  when  he  gave  Wolfe  his 
hand  to  kiss,  may  have  looked  twice  at  this  man  ("  too  young  to 
be  a  colonel ")  whom  so  many  of  his  lieges  were  praising  and  resolved 
to  advance  in  spite  of  his  royal  will. 

While  the  nation  and  the  empire  resounded  with  war''s  alarums, 
Wolfe  was  as  busy  as  ever  he  had  been  in  his  life.  Most  of  the 
home  regiments  had  recruited  second  battalions,  and  first  amongst 
them  the  Twentieth.  He  never  delegated  the  task  of  formation 
and  discipline  to  others.  "  His  regiment  was  the  best  drilled  and 
disciplined  in  the  kingdom,"'"'  afterwards  said  the  third  Duke  of 
Marlborough,  who  at  this  time  as  Lord  Blandford  was  one  of  his 
captains,  and  there  is  ample  testimony  to  the  fact.  After  leaving 
London,  where  he  had  kissed  hands  on  his  Irish  appointment,  our 
Lieutenant-Colonel  travelled  to  Gloucester,  to  inspect  his  second 
battalion. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Gloucester,  \^th  May,  1757. 

Dear  Sir, — I  have  travelled  hither  with  Lord  Blandford, 
who  goes  very  quick.  We  got  to  Cirencester  (by  Oxford)  the 
first  night,  stayed  a  day  there :  and  got  here  to-day  and 
to-morrow  set  out  for  Shrewsbury. 

Our  second  battalion  is  in  very  good  condition,  healthy  and 
forward  in  their  exercises,  and  the  soberest  collection  of  young 
Englishmen  that  I  ever  saw.  The  Major  Beckwith  has  been 
extremely  lucky  in  recruiting.  The  loss  of  the  Austrians  is  not  i 
so  considerable  as  was  expected,  but  it  is  for  the  reputation  of  \ 
the  King  of  Prussia's  arms  to  drive  them  before  him.  I  suppose 
we  may  soon  expect  to  hear  of  a  decisive  action. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

For  three  months  England  was  without  a  ministry.  At  last, 
during  June,  Wolfe  learnt  that  Pitt  was  again  in  power.  He 
became  principal  Secretary  of  State,  while  the  Duke  of  New- 
castle took  the  Treasury. 

A  few  weeks  later  a  general  encampment  was  formed  on 
Bradford  Heath,  near  Dorchester,  and  thither  Wolfe  went  with 
both  his  battalions.  While  he  was  there  training  his  troops  with  an 
eye  to  service  in  any  part  of  the  world,  Pitt,  with  his  hand  on  the 
helm,  had  decided  on  a  daring  move  against  the  enemy  at  home. 
This  move  accorded  well  with  his  own  genius,  but  it  originated 


320     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

~;with  Frederick  of  Prussia.  England  had  been  in  a  shrinking 
attitude  too  long  and  the  nation  was  sick  of  perpetually  acting  on 
the  defensive.^ 

Pitt's  plan  was  to  strike  a  blow,  sudden  and  unexpected,  at  the 
French  coasts.  Three  years  before,  one  Captain  Clarke,^  travelling 
through  the  west  of  France,  had  been  struck  by  a  spot  on  the  coast 
vulnerable  to  a  marked  degree.  Rochefort  in  Aunis,  a  few  miles 
from  where  the  embouchure  of  the  Charente  pours  into  the  Bay  of 
Biscay,  was  kept  up  as  an  arsenal  for  naval  stores,  but  maintained 
so  badly  that  this  English  observer  believed  it  could  be  destroyed, 
together  with  such  shipping  and  stores  as  it  was  supposed 
to  guard.  The  paper  was  dispatched  to  Sir  John  Ligonier,  who 
now  transmitted  it  to  Pitt,  whose  keen  eye  fastened  upon  the 
salient  point  at  once.     Rochefort  would  serve  his  ends. 

If  such  an  expedition  was  to  succeed,  it  must  be  carried  out  at 
once.  Every  day  the  crisis  grew  more  acute.  Ten  thousand 
troops  were  to  take  part  in  the  attack,  and  to  transport  such  a 
number  at  such  short  notice  Lord  Anson  (then  at  the  Admiralty) 
declared  was  impossible.  Pitt  informed  him  that  if  the  transports 
were  not  ready  to  the  day  he  would  lay  Anson"'s  dereliction 
before  the  King  and  impeach  him  in  the  House  of  Commons. 
Anson  took  the  hint  and  Pitt  had  no  reason  to  complain  of 
Admiralty  co-operation.  If  there  was  delay  it  was  not  owing  to 
want  of  zeal  on  the  part  of  the  officials. 

Pitt  and  his  Secret  Committee  hit  upon  the  Rochefort  objective 
about  the  middle  of  July.  Every  department  laboured  its  utmost, 
but  still  it  was  inevitable  that  precious  weeks  should  slip  away 
before  the  expedition  could  sail.  The  secret  of  the  destination 
was  well  kept:  but  the  magnitude  of  the  preparations  kept  the 
whole  of  Europe  on  the  qui  vive.  "  Every  one  of  the  generals," 
says  a  recent  French  historian,^  "  who  held  commands  along  the 
coasts  of  the  Channel  or  the  North  Sea  felt  himself  threatened." 
Marshal    Richelieu    thought    the    expedition    was    intended    to 

*  The  King  of  Prussia  told  Mitchell  the  British  Ambassador  ^'  that 
England's  seeming  to  act  upon  the  offensive  will  have  a  greater  effect  upon 
the  councils  of  France  as  well  as  give  a  spirit  to  the  English  nation  who  have 
hitherto  been  frightened  with  vain  terrors  of  invasion,  and  that  the  only  way  to 
prevent  like  panic  is  to  show  by  some  vigorous  act  that  you  do  not  fear  them." 
— Mitchell  to  Holderness^  July  5,  1757. 

^  The  son  of  an  Edinburgh  physician.  Walpole  speaks  of  him  as  "&  young 
Scot  by  name  Clarke  ;  ill-favoured  in  his  person,  with  a  cast  in  his  eye,  of 
intellect  not  very  sound;  but  quick,  bold  and  adventurous."  Entinck  describes 
him  as  a  ^*^  worthy,  intelligent,  skilful  officer." 

2  Waddington,  La  Guerre  de  Sept  Ans. 


SUMMONED   BY  PITT  321 

relieve  Cumberland,  whose  position  was  by  this  time  grown  very 
grave. 

But  while  in  England  ships  were  being  overhauled,  provisions 
for  six  months  laid  in,  seamen  being  impressed  by  thousands, 
scaling  ladders  constructed  of  such  size  that  thirty  men  might 
mount  abreast,  boats  built,  and  a  thousand  incidental  details  com- 
pleted, Pitt  was  busy  choosing  the  personnel  of  the  expedition. 
From  a  letter  written  to  Rickson,  then  acting  as  Deputy  Quarter- 
master-General for  Scotland,  we  learn  that  Wolfe  had  been  called 
to  London  and  informed  that  he  was  to  serve  in  the  expedition. 

To  Major  Rickson. 

London,  July  21st,  1757. 
My  Dear  Rickson, — ^Though  I  have  matter  enough,  and 
pleasure  in  writing  a  long  letter,  yet  I  must  now  be  short.  Your 
joy  upon  the  occasion  of  my  new  employment,  I  am  sure,  is  very 
sincere,  as  is  that  which  I  feel  when  any  good  thing  falls  to  your 
share ;  but  this  new  office  does  neither  please  nor  flatter  me, 
as  you  may  believe  when  I  tell  you  that  it  was  offered  with  the 
rank  of  Colonel,  which  the  King,  guided  by  the  Duke,  afterwards 
refused.  His  Royal  Highness"'s  reasons  were  plausible ;  he  told 
the  Duke  of  Bedford  (who  applied  with  warmth)  that  I  was  so 
young  a  lieutenant-colonel  that  it  could  not  be  done  immediately. 
But  I  should  have  known  it  in  time,  that  I  might  have  excused 
myself  from  a  very  troublesome  business,  which  is  quite  out  of 
my  way.  .  .  . 

We  are  about  to  undertake  something  or  other  at  a  distance, 
and  I  am  one  of  the  party.  I  can't  flatter  you  with  a  lively 
picture  of  my  hopes  as  to  the  success  of  it ;  the  reasons  are  so 
strong  against  us  (the  English)  in  whatever  we  take  in  hand,  that 
I  never  expect  any  great  matter ;  the  chiefs,  the  engineers,  and 
our  wretched  disciphne,  are  the  great  and  insurmountable 
obstructions.  I  doubt  yet  if  there  be  any  fixed  plan ;  we  wait 
for  American  intelligence,  from  whence  the  best  is  not  expected, 
and  shall  probably  be  put  into  motion  by  that  intelhgence.  I 
myself  take  the  chance  of  a  profession  little  understood  and  less 
liked  in  this  country.  I  may  come  off  as  we  have  done  before  ; 
but  I  never  expect  to  see  either  the  poor  woman  my  mother,  or 
the  General  again, — she  is  at  present  dangerously  ill,  he  is  infirm 
with  age.  Whether  my  going  may  hurry  their  departure,  you 
are  as  good  a  judge  as  I  am.  Besides  their  loss,  I  have  not  a 
soul  to  take  chai'ge  of  my  little  affairs,  and  expect  to  find  every- 


322    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

thing  in  the  utmost  confusion,  robbed  and  plundered  by  all  that 
can  catch  hold  of  them. 

I  heartily  wish  you  were  fixed  in  the  employment  you  now 
exercise;  but  if  David  Watson^  is  not  misrepresented  to  me, 
you  have  everything  to  fear  from  his  artifices  and  double-dealing. 
I  wish  I  was  strong  enough  to  carry  you  through,  I'd  take  you 
upon  my  back ;  but  my  people  are  away.  Calcraft  could  serve 
you — no  man  better.  He  is  the  second  or  third  potentate  in 
this  realm.  I  may  have  an  opportunity  of  speaking  to  Napier, 
but  there  Watson  governs  almost  alone ;  and  we  are  not  sharp 
enough  to  dive  into  the  hearts  of  men.  The  nephew  goes  with 
us.  I  must  have  succumbed  imder  the  weight  of  some  characters 
of  this  sort  if  I  had  not  stood  out  in  open  defiance  of  their 
wicked  powers.  A  man  will  not  be  ill-used  that  will  not  bear  it. 
Farewell,  my  honest  little  friend.     I  am  ever  your 

Faithful  and  affectionate  servant, 

James  Wolfe. 

To  Hawke  was  given  command  of  the  fleet,  sixteen  sail  of  the 
line,  in  addition  to  frigates,  fireships,  bomb  ketches,  etc.  With 
Hawke  went  Vice- Admiral  Knowles  and  Rear- Admiral  Brodrick. 
Lord  George  Sackville  was  offered  the  command  of  the  troops,  but 
it  appears  he  distrusted  the  expedition  and  declined.  Conway, 
Pitt's  choice,  was  ready  to  take  the  leadership,  but  he  was  either 
not  persona  grata  to  the  King  or  was  thought  "  too  young ""  (youth 
was  to  show  what  it  could  do  later,  when  the  reign  was  in  its  last 
gasps),  and  the  honour  and  responsibility  then  fell  upon  Wolfe's 
friend  and  patron.  Sir  John  Mordaunt.  Mordaunt  had  been  a 
good  man  in  his  day  and  he,  at  least,  was  not  "  too  young."  He 
never  forgot  that  he  was  nephew  of  that  Earl  of  Peterborough  who 
had  performed  such  brilliant  feats  ("  soldier  and  sailor  too ")  in 
Queen  Anne's  day.  At  sixty  his  spirit  and  constitution  were  gone 
and  he  had  lost  his  nerve.  Once,  Walpole  says,  he  boasted  "  a  sort 
of  alacrity  in  daring,  but  from  ill-health  was  grown  indifferent  to 
it."  Conway,  a  man  of  cold,  indecisive  temper,  little  liked  in  the 
army,  and  one,  moreover,  with  little  faith  in  the  success  of  the 
venture  upon  which  he  was  now  engaged,  was  second  in  command. 
His  antipodes,  Comwallis,  also  accompanied  the  troops. 

But  it  is  upon  the  Quartermaster-General  and  chief  of  the  staff 
that  not  only  our  own  interest,  but  the  ultimate  interest  of  the  expedi- 

*  Quartennaster-General  in  Scotland. 


ISLE   OF  WIGHT  AGAIN  323 

tion,  rests.  James  Wolfe,  in  Walpole"*s  words,  was  "  a  young  officer 
who  had  contracted  reputation  from  his  intelligence  of  discipline 
and  from  the  perfection  to  which  he  brought  his  own  regiment. 
The  world  could  not  expect  more  from  him  than  he  thought  him- 
self capable  of  performing.  He  looked  upon  danger  as  the 
favourable  moment  that  would  call  forth  his  talents."''' 

So  that  it  was  as  Quartermaster-General  on  Continental  service 
and  not  as  Quartermaster- General  in  Ireland  that  destiny  called 
upon  Wolfe  to  serve.  The  troops  were  ah'eady  assembling  in  the 
Isle  of  Wight  when  Wolfe  sat  down  to  write  the  Lord-Lieutenant 
the  following  letter  necessitated  by  the  circumstances — 

To  THE  Duke  of  Bedford. 

August  1757. 
My  Lord, — The  honour  of  holding  an  employment  under 
your  Grace,  and  my  particular  obligations  to  you  upon  that 
account,  make  it  a  point  of  duty,  as  well  as  of  respect,  to  mention 
that  a  battalion  of  Colonel  Kingsley's  regiment  is  ordered  to  be 
ready  to  embark ;  and  as  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  that  battalion, 
I  embark  with  it,  upon  what  service  none  of  us  pretend  to  guess ; 
nor  ought  we  to  be  very  solicitous  about  it,  rather  desiring  to 
serve  well  than  to  know  where.  If  this  business  did  not  stand  in 
the  way,  it  would  give  me  the  highest  satisfaction  to  endeavour 
to  acquit  myself  so  as  to  meet  your  Grace's  approbation,  being 
quite  assured  that  you  would  take  it  in  good  part  whatever  was 
well  intended,  and  accept  of  industry  to  supply  the  want  of  skill. 
I  beg  to  be  allowed  to  wish  your  Grace  most  perfect  health,  and 
to  add  that  I  have  the  honour  to  be,  etc., 

James  Wolfe. 

How  different  were  Quartermaster-General  Wolfe"'s  feelings  on 
his  return  to  the  Isle  of  Wight  after  an  absence  of  seventeen  years ! 
He  was  then  a  pale  child  of  thirteen,  racked  with  anguish  because 
too  ill  to  accompany  his  father  to  the  Spanish  Main  and  weeping 
for  the  lost  glories  of  war.  He  had  since  revelled  in  these 
"  glories  *"  to  the  full,  and  had  endured  many  campaigns.  He  was 
still  little  more  than  a  boy,  yet  he  had  gone  far  and  his  name  was 
known  throughout  the  army  as  that  of  a  perfect  soldier.  All  this 
was  as  nothing.  As  he  entered  the  farmhouse  on  the  outskirts  of 
Newport,  which  he  well  remembered,  he  probably  felt  that  now  as 
then  his  career  was  all  before  him.  He  had  "  done  nothing.""  In 
this  very  expedition  he  was  to  turn  a  fresh  page:  nay,  he  had 
Y  2 


324    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

begun  a  new  volume  of  his  life.     From  Rochefort  dates  Wolfe'^s 
fame  in  history. 

The  army  was  ready  to  embark  on  August  10,  so  much  dispatch 
had  been  made  on  the  military  side.  But  the  transports  were 
not  due  for  another  three  weeks. 


To  HIS  Mother. 

Newport,  10  Aug.  VJ5*J. 

Dear  Madam, — Our  little  army  is  collected  and  ready  to 
embark,  but  the  ships  are  not  yet  come  round,  and  I  think  it 
uncertain  when  they  may.  I  hope  you  continue  to  mend,  and 
that  you  will  soon  be  strong  enough  to  begin  your  journey  to 
Bath,  where,  from  experience  you  may  expect  relief. 

The  enclosed  letter  is  an  account  which  belongs  to  the  other 
letter  left  with  my  father  ;  and  my  little  affairs  are  brought  into 
some  order ;  and  under  some  decent  regulation. 

I  wish  you  better  health,  and  every  good  thing  of  this  life ; 
I  beg  my  duty  to  my  father,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Newport,  Isle  of  Wight,  August  22nd,  VJB'J. 

Dear  Madam, — I  don't  expect  a  letter  from  you, — I  mean 
that  you  will  not  write  till  you  have  been  a  month  at  the  Bath. 
Then,  if  ships  come  our  way,  whichever  route  we  take,  I  shall 
be  glad  to  have  news  from  you.  The  winds  do  sharply  oppose 
our  enterprise,  and  so  violently  at  this  time,  that  we  are  well 
ashore,  in  my  mind.  We  have  much  company,  much  exercise,  a 
theatre,  and  all  the  camp  amusements,  besides  balls  and  concerts. 
The  General  seemed  to  foresee  my  habitation.  I  am  possessed 
of  the  farmhouse  formerly  General  Wentworth's,  which  I  find  to 
be  a  dreary  lodging ;  however,  it  affects  me  as  little  as  anybody, 
whose  great  concern  in  this  life  is  neither  food  nor  raiment,  nor 
house  to  sleep  in. 

I  am,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  weeks  dragged  on,  and  still  the  fleet  had  not  sailed.  His 
mother  had  written  him  to  say  she  had  heard  of  his  fascinating 
behaviour  at  a  ball  at  Newport. 


A  CONTINENTAL   CRISIS         325 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Newport,  Isle  of  Wight,  September  Srd,  1757. 
Dear  Madam, — You  know  my  history  better  than  I  could 
imagine.  The  ladies  call  that  handsome  (when  they  are  well 
bred)  which  in  reality  is  very  moderate.  My  temper  naturally 
leads  me  to  that  which  my  circumstances  seldom  admit  of. 
Money  would  discover  my  turn  to  be  rather  liberal  and  social 
than  otherwise.  I  was  this  day  on  board  the  "  Royal  George," 
when  I  inquired  for  Kit  Mason,^  and  saw  him  in  perfect  health. 
After  the  voyage  he  hopes  to  see  his  mother,  and  was  mightily 
pleased  to  hear  about  her  from  me.  He  resembles  Mrs.  Mason  ; 
has  beautiful  eyes  of  her  make,  is  grown  tall,  and  in  my  opinion 
is  a  very  fine  boy.  He  was  clean  and  looked  healthy.  If  we 
sail  in  the  same  fleet,  I  shall  ask  after  him  every  now  and  then. 
The  wind  is  fair  and  we  expect  the  transports  tomorrow. 

I  am,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

"  Nothing  was  wanting,"  as  one  historian  observes,  "  to  ensure 
success  but  a  General"  when  on  September  7  the  ten  regiments 
weighed  anchor.  Not  imtil  they  had  been  a  week  at  sea  did  the 
officers  learn  their  destination  and  object. 

Meanwhile  many  things  had  happened  abroad  which  made 
Pitt's  project  of  even  greater  importance  than  when  it  was  first 
conceived.  On  July  24  the  battle  between  Cumberland  and 
D'*Estrees  had  been  fought  at  Hastenbeck,  and  the  British  had 
sustained  a  severe  defeat.  All  the  chief  fortresses  on  the  Weser 
fell  into  French  hands.  Hanover  had  surrendered  and  the 
Hanoverian  government  had  fled.  Frederick,  forced  to  withdraw 
from  Bohemia,  and  with  hostile  Swedes  and  Russians  in  movement, 
was  in  despair.  "  The  crisis  is  so  terrible,"  he  wrote  at  the  end 
of  August,  "  that  it  can't  last  much  longer.  The  month  of 
September  will  decide  my  fate  for  the  autumn  and  winter." 

The  truth  is  the  King  believed  that  the  hope  of  saving  the 
situation  lay  in  getting  reinforcements  to  Cumberland,  then 
stationed  at  Stade,  and  up  to  the  very  eve  of  the  fleet's  sailing  did 
his  utmost  to  get  the  destination  diverted  to  Stade.  Hardwicke 
thought  that  when  the  French  had  done  their  worst  in  Germany 
they  would  turn  their  attention  to  England. 

1  Afterwards  Sir  Christopher  Mason,  who  died  a  Vice-Admiral  in  1802. 
There  is  a  monument  to  his  memory  in  front  of  Greenwich  Church.  Many 
references  to  the  Masons  will  be  found  in  Wolfe's  letters. 


326    LIFE  AND    LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

"  For  God's  sake,''  he  urged  Newcastle,  "  insist  that  the  troops 
should  be  back  by  the  middle  or  before  the  end  of  September." 
And  Newcastle  prevailed  upon  his  strenuous  colleague,  Pitt,  to 
agree  to  this  condition,  which  was  included  in  Hawke's  and 
Mordaunt's  instructions,  although  it  was  afterwards  relaxed.  But 
the  relaxation  came  too  late  for  it  to  be  of  any  use.  The  leaders 
of  the  Rochefort  expedition,  heedless  of  Byng's  fate,  had  already 
made  up  their  minds  to  do  nothing. 

The  fleet  sailed  with  Wolfe  on  board  the  Ramillies,  a  ship 
named  after  a  battle  in  which  his  own  father  had  fought.  On 
that  very  day  poor  William  Henry,  Duke  of  Cumberland,  the 
British  commander  on  the  continent,  had  signed  the  convention  of 
Klosterzeven,  and  the  death-warrant  of  his  military  reputation. 

Even  before  he  stepped  on  board  the  Ramillies  Wolfe  saw 
enough  to  convince  him  that  the  expedition  stood  in  great  danger 
from  the  want  of  co-operation  between  the  military  and  naval 
commanders.  But  between  the  two  it  needed  little  acumen  to 
perceive  which  was  the  inferior.  As  Wright  observes,  he  could  not 
"  recognize  amongst  them  a  particle  of  that  self-denying  patriotism 
which  prompted  his  own  zeal  for  the  service." 

I       Wolfe  was,  as  usual,  extremely  sick  at  sea,  and  it  was  ten  days 
[before  he  wrote  his  first  letter  home. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

"  Ramillies,"  Vjth  September,  1767- 
Dear  Madam, — A  man  should  always  have  a  letter  writ  at 
sea,  because  the  opportunities  of  despatching  them  are  seldom 
and  sudden,  and  a  sick,  qualmish  stomach  is  to  consult  the 
weather.  He  must  write  when  he  can ;  he  may  not  be  able  to 
do  it  when  he  would.  The  progress  of  our  arms  has  been 
greatly  retarded  by  calms  and  fogs,  and  the  formidable  Gulf 
of  Biscay;  in  which  we  are  navigating,  is  just  now  as  smooth 
as  the  river  Thames  in  winter.  Perhaps  in  twenty-four  hours 
the  waves  may  touch  the  clouds,  and  then  the  great  machine 
will  roll  about  like  a  tub,  and  we,  the  inhabitants  of  it,  shall 
partake  severely  of  the  perturbation.  The  troops  are  imder 
good  regulations  and  good  care,  and  consequently  are  all  well 
and  healthy.  They  feed  well  and  lie  well,  and  being  in  their 
nature  regardless  of  future  events,  their  minds  are  in  their  usual 
state,  roused  a  little,  perhaps,  by  curiosity  and  the  desire  of 
something  new. 

For  a  man  that  does  not  feel  the  ship's  motion,  and  whose 


OFF  TO   ROCHEFORT 


327 


nose  is  not  too  nice  for  the  smells,  this  life  for  a  little  while  is 
tolerable ;  it  is  then  an  easy,  commodious  conveyance  for  a 
distant  place,  and  upon  the  quarter-deck  of  a  ninety-gun  ship  a 


LA  ROCHELLE 


iV.  Chtc]i)llon 


Statute  Miles 


i.  I I I 


■0     1     2    3    4    5 


ROCHEFORT 

AND   VICINITY 


ROCHEFORT 

1757 


46 


PLAN   OF  ROCHEFORT  AND  LOCALITY. 


man  may  stretch  and  exercise  his  limbs.  I  have  not  myself  been 
one  hour  well  since  we  embarked,  and  have  the  mortification  to 
find  that  I  am  the  worst  mariner  in  the  whole  ship.     General, 


328    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

secretary,  and  aides-de-camp  are  all  stouter,  all  better  seamen 
than  myself.  If  I  make  the  same  figui*e  ashore,  I  shall  acquire 
no  great  reputation  by  the  voyage.  The  "  Royal  George "  is 
one  of  the  Sir  Edward  Hawke's  seconds,  is  constantly  on  his 
larboard  quarter,  and  very  near,  so  that  I  have  frequent  oppor- 
tunities of  asking  for  little  Mason,  and  always  hear  that  he  is 
well,  which  will  be  the  most  pleasing  intelligence  to  his  mother. 
Little  Gusty  is  in  the  "  Burford,""  and  a  hardy  seaman. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 


To  HIS  Father. 

OiF  the  Isles  of  Rh6  and  Oleron,  2l6'^  September,  1767. 

Dear  Sir, — Yesterday  morning  the  fleet  made  the  land  of 
the  Isle  of  Rhe,  and  in  the  afternoon  Vice- Admiral  Knowles  was 
detached  with  his  division  to  go  within  the  Pertuis  d'Antioche,^ 
and  see  what  anchoring  there  was  for  the  fleet ;  and  I  suppose 
he  had  orders  to  attack  any  fortifications  or  batteries  of  the 
enemy  that  might  incommode  us  at  an  anchor,  or  prevent 
landing.  While  the  Vice- Admiral  was  getting  on  to  put  these 
orders  into  execution,  a  large  French  man-of-war  bore  down  into 
the  middle  of  the  fleet, — a  ship  supposed  to  be  homeward  bound 
from  the  East  or  West  Indies, — upon  which  three  ships  of  his 
division  were  directed  to  chase.  They  did  so,  and  drove  the 
French  ship  in  with  the  shore  above  the  river  of  Bordeaux,  and 
there  our  great  ships  were  obliged  to  leave  her.  This  chase  put 
an  end  to  the  operations  of  yesterday.  As  soon  as  the  chasing 
ships  returned  this  morning,  it  was  resolved  that  the  whole  fleet 
should  go  down  and  anchor  in  the  Basque  Road,  from  whence 
we  may  attack  either  of  these  two  islands  [Rhe  or  Oleron], 
Rochelle  or  Rochefort.  A  disposition  was  made,  and  the  Vice- 
AdmiraPs  division  led  in.  Just  as  the  whole  fleet  was  getting 
within  the  Pertuis  the  wind  took  them  short,  and  they  were 
obliged  to  stand  out  again ;  and  here  we  are  now,  beating  on 
and  off*,  waiting  for  a  better  day  and  a  more  favourable  gale. 

Since  I  writ  my  mother's  letter  we  have  had  variety  of 
winds,  but  in  general  moderate  weather,  and  nothing  remarkable 
but  the  circumstance  of  that  ship's  running  in  amongst  us,  and 
escaping  by  half  an  hour.  It  is  believed  that  she  would  have 
been  a  very  rich   prize.     The  inhabitants  are  alarmed ;    they 

^  The  channel  between  the  islands  Rhe  and  Oleron.     See  map,  overleaf. 


A   FATAL   DELAY  329 

fired  guns  all  along  the  coast  last  night,  and  we  now  see  the 
smoke  rising  upon  the  sea-shore,  as  a  signal,  no  doubt,  of  our 
appearance.  These  delays  on  our  side,  after  notice  given  to  the 
enemy,  may  have  ill  consequences  ;  but  they  are  such  as,  I 
suppose,  were  not  easily  to  be  avoided.  We  are  come  to  an 
anchor  in  the  Bay  of  Biscay  (a  thing  uncommon),  off  the  Isle  of 
Rhe,  in  readiness  to  push  in  early  in  the  morning.  Sir  Edward 
[Hawke]  seems  determined  to  do  everything  that  can  be  done 
upon  this  occasion  consistent  with  his  orders  and  instructions, 
and  the  safety  of  the  fleet. 

22nd, — We  are  now  at  an  anchor  within  the  Pertuis 
d''Antioche,  between  the  isles  of  Rhe  and  Oleron,  waiting  for  a 
breeze  of  wind  to  go  down  upon  the  Isle  d'Aix,  which  is  in  sight; 
but  it  is  a  perfect  calm,  and  our  whole  force  immovable. 

23rd,  in  the  morning, — All  still  at  an  anchor,  the  inhabitants 
of  Rhe  working  hard  at  their  entrenchments  along  the  shore,  to 
prevent  our  landing.  The  "  Medway,"*'  "  Achilles,"  and  a  fire- 
ship  ordered  to  burn  a  French  Ship-of-war  behind  the  Isle  d'Aix 
as  soon  as  Admiral  Knowles"*  division  begins  the  attack. 

Howe  greatly  added  to  his  reputation  by  his  conduct  in  this 
business.  In  spite  of  their  youth,  had  these  two  men  the  conduct 
of  the  Rochefort  affair  it  would  have  had  a  very  different  ending.  Of 
Howe,  Walpole  says  he  was  as  "  undaunted  as  a  rock  and  as  silent ; 
the  characteristics  of  his  whole  race.  He  and  Wolfe  soon  contracted 
a  friendship,  like  the  union  of  a  cannon  and  gunpowder.'' 

Wolfe's  prognostications  were  to  be  fulfilled  to  the  letter. 
Mordaunt  knew  from  a  report  in  his  possession  that  the  enemy 
had  only  10,000  men  on  the  entire  coast,  yet  he  and  Conway  per- 
sisted in  thinking  a  landing  desperate,  although  the  chances  were 
that  they  would  be  opposed  by  only  a  handful  of  men.  Enormous 
importance  was  attached  to  surprising  the  enemy,  as  if  surprise 
were  an  essential  part  of  the  plan.  Ligonier,  his  chief  at  the 
Horse  Guards,  had  reminded  Mordaunt  that  it  was  not  an  essential 
point.  But  what  was  vital  was  to  land  and  strike  at  the  enemy, 
whether  he  knew  the  British  were  coming  or  not.  As  a  matter 
of  fact,  we  know  now  the  defenders  of  Rochefort  were  in  a  panic : 
and  had  Mordaunt  struck,  it  would,  as  they  said  themselves,  have 
been  "  all  over  with  the  port  of  Rochefort."  Hawke  hung  about 
for  two  precious  days. 

"  It  is  difficult,"  says  Mr.  Corbett,  "  conceding  all  that  can  be 
urged  in    Hawke's  favour,  to  avoid  the  impression   that   in   the 


330     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

handling  of  the  fleet  at  this  time  there  was  to  some  degree  a  lack 
of  that  hardness  of  grip,  that  directness  of  aim,  that  colour  of 
audacity  which  are  the  soul  of  such  operations/'  ^ 
In  his  letter  to  his  father  Wolfe  continues — 

Isle  d'Aix,  2Brd,  in  the  evening, — The  fort  of  the  Isle  d'Aix 
taken  by  Captain  Howe,  in  the  "  Magnanime,""  with  a  few  distant 
shot  from  the  "Barfleur."  There  were  five  great  ships  upon 
this  business ;  but  as  Captain  Howe  led,  he  saved  the  rest  the 
trouble  of  battering,  and  confounded  the  defendants  to  that 
degree  with  the  vivacity  of  his  fire  that  they  deserted  thirty 
pieces  of  cannon  and  eight  mortars,  and  struck  after  thirty-five 
minutes  of  resistance.  There  were  500  men  in  the  fort  of  which 
very  few  were  killed ;  and  the  "  Magnanime "  lost  but  three 
killed,  and  eight  or  ten  wounded.  Mr.  Howe''s  manner  of  going 
down  upon  the  enemy,  and  his  whole  proceeding,  have  raised  the 
opinion  people  had  of  his  courage  and  abilities  to  a  very  high 
pitch.  The  ship  which  Sir  Edward  ordered  to  be  burned  was 
further  off  than  he  imagined,  and  even  now  we  perceive  her  to 
be  within  the  mouth  of  the  Charente. 

We  are  preparing  to  land  somewhere  between  Rochelle  and 
Rochefort,  for  the  sake  of  mischief  more  than  any  success  we  can 
propose  to  ourselves  after  such  long  preparations  and  notice  to 
the  enemy.  I  believe  the  expedition  will  end  in  our  landing  and 
fighting,  and  then  returning  to  our  ships ;  and  we  may  bombard 
Rochelle,  put  the  isles  of  Rhe  and  Oleron  under  contribution, 
blow  up  the  fortress  of  the  Isle  d'Aix,  and  spread  terror  all  along 
the  coast.  If  we  had  set  out  upon  this  business  in  time,  I 
believe  we  should  have  been  thought  very  troublesome.  This  is 
a  most  pleasing  climate,  and  the  grapes  upon  the  Isle  d'Aix  are 
exceedingly  delicious,  especially  to  a  sick  stomach.  I  have  been 
told  that  General  Conway,  with  three  battalions,  went  down 
with  Mr.  Knowles'  division  to  assist  in  the  attack ;  but  they  were 
not  wanted,  only  to  take  possession  and  guard  the  prisoners, 
who  were  used  with  all  possible  humanity  by  Captain  Howe. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe  resolved  to  do  something.  It  was  intolerable  that 
nothing  should  be  done.  His  friendship  with  Sir  John  Mordaunt 
enabled  him  boldly  to  prefer  a  request  which  in  ordinary  circum- 

1  England  in  the  Seven  Years'  War,  p.  212. 


A  MASTER  OF  STRATEGY         331 

stances  would  not  have  been  granted.  It  might  have  been  considered 
presumptuous  to  a  degree.  He  asked  to  be  allowed  to  go  ashore 
and  reconnoitre  the  country  the  moment  the  fortress  of  Aix  fell. 
Mordaunt,  fearing  to  deny  any  request  to  such  an  ardent  soldier, 
granted  his  wish.  Wolfe  therefore  got  into  a  boat  and  hung  about 
until  the  white  flag  flew  and  then  landed.  He  went  straight  to 
that  part  of  the  fortifications  facing  the  mainland,  climbed  alone 
up  to  a  battered  bastion  and  pointed  his  telescope  carefully  for 
an  hour.  In  the  near  distance  he  examined  the  sandy  promontory 
of  Fouras,  guarded  by  a  small  fort.  It  was  useless  to  attempt 
to  capture  Rochefort  while  this  fort  was  in  the  way.  More- 
over, northward  lay  another  low  promontory  midway  between 
Rochelle  and  Rochefort  which  his  trained  eye  saw  at  once  would 
furnish  an  excellent  landing  for  the  force.  This  was  marked 
"  Chattelaiellon  '''  on  his  chart.  Hastily  jotting  down  the  result  of 
his  observations  he  got  back  into  the  boat  and  rowed  back  to  the 
Ramillies,  where  he  made  his  report  to  the  leaders  of  the  expedition, 
Hawke  and  Mordaunt. 

Briefly,  his  opinion  was  that  Fouras,  whose  situation  and 
strength  he  detailed,  must  be  battered  to  pieces.  This  could  be 
compassed  by  a  single  man-of-war ;  the  attempt  would  cause  a 
sufficient  diversion,  imder  cover  of  which  the  troops  could  land  at 
Chattelaiellon.  The  Admiral  was  instantly  struck  by  the  plan ; 
the  General  also  gave  his  adhesion,  expressing  a  hope  that  the 
Huguenot  pilot  Thierry  knew  just  what  was  the  depth  of  water  off* 
Fouras,  to  enable  the  Magnanime  to  approach  close  to  the  fort. 
Wolfe  now  broke  in  with  a  fui-ther  suggestion,  to  the  effect  that  a 
diversion  by  means  of  bomb  ketches  on  the  Rochelle  side  would 
still  further  divide  the  enemy's  attention.  On  Hawke's  assenting  to 
this,  Wolfe  observed,  "  Then,  sir,  not  a  moment  is  to  be  lost." 
Sending  for  Thierry,  the  pilot,  while  the  bomb  ketches  were  being 
got  ready,  the  Admiral  questioned  him  closely.  The  pilot  grasped 
Wolfe's  idea  at  once  ;  it  would  be  quite  possible  to  take  the  ship 
close  up  to  Fouras  and  under  cover  of  it  land  troops  on  both  sides 
of  the  fort.  But  Hawke  was  not  wholly  convinced,  probably  hating 
to  be  "  rushed  "  by  a  mere  land  officer.  That  was  where  Hawke 
made  his  mistake.  Wolfe  was  not  merely  a  land  soldier.  He  was 
a  warrior  with  a  genius  for  amphibious  warfare,  destined  shortly 
to  leave  "  the  reputation  of  being  the  greatest  master  of  combined 
strategy  the  world  had  seen  since  Drake  took  the  art  from  its 
swaddling  clothes."  ^ 

1  Corbett,  p.  221. 


332    LIFE  AND  LETTERS    OF   WOLFE 

Wolfe  was  a  believer  in  the  moral  impetus,  and  it  fretted  his 
soul  to  see  the  chances  of  success  slipping  away.  Hawke  finally 
agreed  to  the  proposal  as  regards  Fouras  but  not  to  the  Rochelle 
diversion.  He  sent  up  Brodrick  to  find  a  landing-place  for  the 
troops,  this  being  in  Mordaunfs  opinion  purely  "  sailor*'s  business."" 
Brodrick  came  back  on  the  day  following  (the  24th),  to  say  he  had 
found  a  place  where  Mordaunt  could  land  his  troops  without  so 
much  as  wetting  their  shoes.  Hawke  expected  Mordaunt  would 
avail  himself  of  the  opportunity.  But  what  Mordaunt  actually 
did  was  to  call  a  council  of  war  for  the  following  morning.  Here 
they  discussed  the  chances  for  and  against  escalading  the  ditch  at 
Rochefort,  and  finally  decided  the  chances  would  be  against  them. 
Hawke,  it  was  thought,  would  be  unable  to  get  the  troops  back  safe 
again  on  board  in  case  of  a  failure.  Their  decision  was  confirmed 
by  Hawke's  detachment  to  take  Foiu-as  getting  aground. 

Not  alone  in  his  exasperation  was  Wolfe.  The  common 
soldiers  and  sailors  were  infuriated  at  being  brought  up  to  the  very 
nose  of  their  prey  and  having  to  sail  back  to  England  without  even 
an  attempt  to  thrust  at  him.  True,  Hawke  for  his  part  wished 
the  troops  to  land,  but  instead  of  exerting  a  cordial  co-operation 
and  so  making  a  unit  of  the  expedition,  he  held  aloof  on  the  ground 
that  he  "was  no  judge  of  land  operations"  and  the  military  arm 
must  get  out  of  the  business  as  best  it  might.  This  was  the  old 
attitude  of  Cathcart  and  Vernon  and  the  Cartagena  expedition  ;  in 
fact  it  was  the  attitude  of  most  military  and  naval  commanders 
serving  in  joint  expeditions.  What  a  different  spectacle  was  Wolfe 
to  bequeath  to  history  ! 

So  intense  was  the  feeling  now  manifested  in  both  Army  and 
Navy  that  the  generals  resolved  at  last  to  make  the  attempt  that 
very  night.  Mordaunt,  to  prove  that  he  was  not  animated  by 
cowardice,  announced  his  intention  to  lead  the  first  division  in 
person.  Brodrick  was  told  off  to  superintend  the  landing  of  the 
men.  At  midnight  on  the  28th  the  boats  were  filled.  There  was 
a  high  wind  and  surf,  but  the  troops  were  eager  to  land  and  could 
not  understand  why  they  should  remain  tossed  about  in  the  billows 
for  three  mortal  hours  for  the  word  to  be  given.  When  it  came 
they  could  hardly  believe  it.  The  astonished  Colonel  in  command 
insisted  on  examining  the  GeneraFs  signature  by  lantern  light.  It 
was  "  Return  to  the  transports."  It  is  useless  to  pierce  the  motives 
for  such  vacillation  and  pusillanimity. 

Conway  and  Wolfe  were  ordered  to  make  still  another 
reconnoitre  at  daybreak.     Such  foolery  as  this  was  too  much  for 


AN  UTTER  FAILURE  333 

Hawke.  If,  said  he,  the  militaiy  part  of  the  expedition  had  no 
further  use  for  his  services  he  would  sail  back  to  England.  In  vain 
Mordaunt  besought  a  joint  council  to  consider  the  matter.  As  if 
the  matter  had  not  been  enough  considered  !  As  if  every  seaman 
and  soldier  was  not  sick  unto  death  of  such  insane  procrastination  ! 
Hawke  refused,  and  at  another  council  Mordaunt,  Conway  and 
Comwallis  decided  finally  to  give  up  the  attempt. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Rade  des  Basques,  30iA  September,  1757. 

Dear  Sir, — By  the  "  Viper ""  sloop  I  have  the  displeasure  to 
inform  you  that  our  operations  here  are  at  an  end.  We  lost  the 
lucky  moment  in  war,  and  are  not  able  to  recover  it.  The  whole 
of  this  expedition  has  not  cost  the  nation  ten  men,  nor  has  any 
man  been  able  to  distinguish  himself  in  the  service  of  his 
country,  except  Mr.  Howe,  who  was  a  great  example  to  us  all. 
We  shall  follow  close  if  the  weather  favours,  and  return  to 
England  with  reproach  and  dishonour ;  though,  in  my  mind, 
there  never  was  in  any  troops,  sea  and  land,  a  better  disposition 
to  serve. 

So  all  sailed  home,  and  the  miserable  Rochefort  expedition  came 
to  a  miserable  end.  It  was  not  all  in  vain.  England  cried  out  at 
the  folly  and  expense  of  it  all,  for  it  had  cost  a  million  of  money. 
Pitt  was  in  an  agony,  the  King  was  furious,  Frederick  was  disgusted. 
But  the  lesson  of  it  had  sunk  deep  into  one  man''s  heart  and  brain — 
so  deep  that  it  took  root  and  blossomed  forth  with  results  full  of 
use  and  glory  to  the  Empire,  and  this  man  was  James  Wolfe. 


XV 

ORDERED  TO   LOUISBOURG 

The  failure  of  the  Rochefort  expedition  upon  the  success  of 
which  he  had  set  so  much  store  bade  fair  to  unseat  Pitt  just  as  he  had 
got  well  into  the  saddle.  But  his  sincerity  and  enthusiasm  pre- 
vailed. When  Parliament  met  he  proved  to  the  satisfaction  of  the 
country,  if  not  to  that  of  the  Old  Gang,  that  the  Rochefort  design  was 
in  Rodney's  phrase), "  wise,  prudent  and  well-timed,"  ^  and  ought  to 
have  succeeded  but  for  the  "  determined  resolution  of  both  naval 
and  military  commanders  against  any  vigorous  exertion  of  the 
national  power."  He  declared  that  he  could  scarce  find  one  man  to 
whom  he  could  confidently  entrust  any  design  which  carried  the 
least  appearance  of  danger.  With  a  force  much  greater  than  the 
nation  had  ever  maintained  and  a  government  ardently  desirous 
of  redeeming  her  glory  and  promoting  her  welfare,  a  shameful  dis- 
like to  the  service  everywhere  prevailed. 

Out  of  the  disaster,  upon  which  an  inquiry  was  ordered  to  be 
held,  Pitt  wrested  signal  advantage  in  putting  the  services  more 
thereafter  on  their  mettle  and  in  instituting  an  instant  reform  of 
current  abuses.  It  was  not  his  fault,  but  the  fault  of  the  instru- 
ments at  his  hand,  bequeathed  him  by  his  predecessors.  Such  he 
was  resolved  not  to  employ  again.  He  had  told  Parliament  he 
could  scarce  find  one  reliable  man.  He  soon  found  one.  His 
glance  had  fallen  upon  his  Quartermaster-General  at  Rochefort, 
and  he  knew  now  where  to  find  a  capable  officer  when  he  wanted 
him. 

On  landing  Wolfe  went  straight  to  Blackheath  only  to  find 
his  parents  at  Bath.  Already  become  a  notable  man,  he  found 
people  eager  to  learn  his  version  of  the  fiasco.  Concerning  his  next 
step,  he  was  uncertain.  He  believed  the  Colonelcy  he  regarded  as 
inseparable  from  his  Irish  appointment  was  yet  remote,  because 
another  Lieutenant-Colonel,  his  junior  in  service,  if  not  in  years, 
had  been  preferred  instead.  He  thereupon  instantly  wrote  to 
Barrington,  the  Secretary  at  War,  resigning  his  post  of  Quarter- 
master-General of  Ireland.     He  also  wrote  to  his  mother — 

1  Almon,  vol.  i.  p.  332. 
334 


RETURNS   TO   BLACKHEATH       335 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Blacklieatli,  Hth  October,  1757. 

Dear  Madam, — To  save  myself  the  trouble  of  answering 
questions,  and  for  the  sake  of  fresh  air  and  exercise,  I  have  taken 
up  my  quarters  at  your  house,  and,  with  Miss  Eleanor's  ^  assist- 
ance, am  like  to  do  well.  By  the  bye,  her  husband  was  very 
useful  to  me  on  board  the  "  Ramillies.'*''  I  was  glad  you  were 
gone  to  the  Bath,  though  I  lost  the  pleasure  of  seeing  you  for  a 
time.  It  is  a  little  melancholy  to  be  left  alone,  especially  to 
one  who  w^as  a  witness  of  our  late  miscarriage.  By  this  trial  I 
find  that  the  cheerfullest  temper  requires  the  aid  and  prop 
of  society.  When  Fran9oise  comes  to  know  what  I  would  have 
for  dinner,  he  distresses  me  with  the  question.  Whenever  I 
keep  house,  somebody  must  direct,  for  I  cannot. 

As  to  the  expedition,  it  has  been  conducted  so  ill  that  I  am 
ashamed  to  have  been  of  the  party.  The  public  could  not  do 
better  than  dismiss  six  or  eight  of  us  from  the  service.  No  zeal, 
no  ardour,  no  care  or  concern  for  the  good  and  honour  of  the 
country.  I  have  began  to  dismiss  myself  by  surrendering  up 
my  office  of  Quartermaster-General  for  Ireland.  They  thought 
proper  to  put  a  younger  lieutenant-colonel  over  me,  and  I 
thought  it  proper  to  resign.  My  Lord  Barrington  says  he  has 
nothing  to  do  with  Irish  affairs,  so  refers  me  to  Mr.  Secretary 
Rigby ;  ^  but  his  Lordship  desires  me  to  suspend  my  operations 
for  a  few  days,  which  accordingly  I  do.  I  will  certainly  not  go 
to  Ireland  without  the  rank  of  Colonel,  and  am  indifferent 
whether  I  get  it  or  not.  I  can't  part  with  my  other  employ- 
ment, because  I  have  nothing  else  to  trust  to ;  nor  do  I  think  it 
consistent  with  honour  to  sneak  off  in  the  middle  of  a  war. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Naturally,  "  Uncle  Wat  *"  was  anxious  to  hear  all  about  Roche- 
fort  from  his  nephew,  and  was  not  disappointed. 

To  Major  Walter  Wolfe. 

Blacklieatli,  18^A  October,  1757. 

Dear   Sir, — "Nous   avons  manque  un  beau  coup,"  as  the 
French  prisoners  told  us,  after  we  had  loitered  away  three  or  four 

1  Eleanor  Wliite_,  a  domestic  to  whom  Mrs.  Wolfe  bequeathed,  in  1764, 
an  annuity  of  £20. 

^  Richard  Rigby,  the  son  of  a  linendraper  who  had  enriched  himself 
as  a  South  Sea  Company  factor,  was  now  Secretary  to  the  Duke  of  Bedford 
in  Ireland. 


336    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

days  in  consultations,  deliberations,  and  councils  of  war.  The 
season  of  the  year  and  nature  of  the  enterprise  called  for  the 
quickest  and  most  vigorous  execution,  whereas  our  proceedings 
were  quite  otherwise.  We  were  in  sight  of  the  Isle  of  Rhe,  the 
20th  September,  consequently  were  seen  by  the  enemy  (as  their 
signals  left  us  no  room  to  doubt),  and  it  was  the  23rd  before  we 
fired  a  gun.  That  afternoon  and  night  slipped  through  our 
hands, — the  lucky  moment  of  confusion  and  consternation  among 
our  enemies.  The  24th, — Admirals  and  Generals  consult  to- 
gether, and  resolve  upon  nothing  between  them  but  to  hold  a 
council  of  war.  The  25th, — this  famous  coimcil  sat  from  morn- 
ing till  late  at  night,  and  the  result  of  the  debates  was  unani- 
mously not  to  attack  the  place  they  were  ordered  to  attack,  and 
for  reasons  that  no  soldier  will  allow  to  be  sufficient.  The  26th, 
— the  Admiral  sends  a  message  to  the  General,  intimating  that 
if  they  did  not  determine  to  do  something  there,  he  would  go  to 
another  place.  The  27th, — the  Generals  and  Admirals  view  the 
land  with  glasses,  and  agree  upon  a  second  council  of  war,  having 
by  this  time  discovered  their  mistake.  The  28th, — they  deliber- 
ate, and  resolve  to  land  that  night.  Orders  are  issued  out 
accordingly,  but  the  wind  springing  up  after  the  troops  had  been 
two  or  three  hours  in  the  boats,  the  officers  of  the  navy  declare 
it  difficult  and  dangerous  to  attempt  the  landing.  The  troops 
are  commanded  back  to  their  transports,  and  so  ended  the  ex- 
pedition !  The  true  state  of  the  case  is,  that  our  sea-officers  do 
not  care  to  be  engaged  in  any  business  of  this  sort,  where  little 
is  to  be  had  but  blows  and  reputation ;  and  the  officers  of  the 
infantry  are  so  profoundly  ignorant,  that  an  enterprise  of  any 
vigour  astonishes  them  to  that  degree  that  they  have  not  strength 
of  mind  nor  confidence  to  carry  it  through. 

I  look  upon  this  as  the  greatest  design  that  the  nation  has 
engaged  in  for  many  years,  and  it  must  have  done  honour  to  us 
all,  if  the  executions  had  answered  the  intentions  of  the  pro- 
j  ector.  The  Court  of  Versailles,  and  the  whole  French  nation,  were 
alarmed  beyond  measure.  "Les  Anglois  ont  attrape  notre 
foible,'"*  disent-ils.  Alas!  we  have  only  discovered  our  own. 
I  see  no  remedy,  for  we  have  no  officers  from  the  Commander-in- 
Chief  down  to  Mr.  Webb  and  Lord  Howe ;  and  the  navy  list 
is  not  much  better.  If  they  would  even  blunder  on  and  fight 
a  little,  making  some  amends  to  the  public  by  their  courage  for 
their  want  of  skill;  but  this  excessive  degree  of  caution,  or 
whatever   name  it  deserves,  leaves  exceeding  bad   impressions 


APPOINTED   COLONEL  337 

among  the  troops,  who,  to  do  them  justice,  upon  this  occasion 
showed  all  the  signs  of  spirit  and  goodwill.  My  health  is  a 
little  injured  by  this  summer's  inactivity,  as  I  have  not  been  able 
to  get  ten  times  on  horseback ;  and  I  am  here  alone,  partly  to 
save  myself  the  trouble  of  answering  questions,  and  partly  for 
air  and  exercise. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  obedient  Nephew, 

James  Wolfe. 

A  few  days  later  he  learnt  that  his  grounds  of  complaint  against 
the  higher  powers  were  unfounded.  It  was  far  from  the  Kiiig''s 
intention,  after  Wolfe"'s  conduct  at  Rochefort,  to  refuse  him  the 
long-wished-for  Colonelcy.  A  new  regiment  should  be  called  into 
existence,  the  67th  (Hampshire),  and  Wolfe  should  command  it. 

To  HIS  Fathee. 

Blackheath,  21st  October,  1757. 

Dear  Sir, — Mr.  Fisher  writes  me  word  that  the  King  has 
been  pleased  to  give  me  the  rank  of  Colonel,  which  at  this  time 
is  more  to  be  prized  than  any  other,  because  it  carries  with  it 
a  favourable  appearance  as  to  my  conduct  upon  this  late  expedi- 
tion, and  an  acceptance  of  my  good  intentions.  I  am  something 
indebted  to  Sir  Edward  Hawke  for  having  spoken  to  Lord 
Anson,  who  took  the  trouble  to  repeat  it  to  the  King.  I  shall 
ask  Sir  John  Ligonier''s  commands  to-morrow  whether  I  go  to 
the  regiment  or  to  Ireland.^  There  is  a  storm  gathering  over 
the  head  of  my  imfortunate  friend  [Cornwallis],  such  a  one  as 
must  necessarily  crush  him ;  though,  in  my  mind,  he  acted  in 
this  affair  but  a  second  part.  That,  as  far  as  I  am  able,  I  shall 
always  be  ready  to  assert,  and  will  give  him  the  best  hints  in  my 
power  for  his  defence.  This  must  remain  a  secret  between  us, 
because  I  know  he  is  ill-used  and  artfully  ruined,  after  suffering 
himself  to  be  misled  by  an  over-fair  opinion  of  his  guide.^ 

Amongst  the  regiments  taking  part  in  the  late  expedition  was 
the    8th,    Lieutenant-General    Wolfe's    regiment,    actually    com- 

^  Ligonier  had  been  appointed  Commander-in-Chief  in  succession  to  the 
Duke  of  Cumberland.  Not  long  afterwards  he  was  created  an  Irish  peer^ 
Viscount  Ligonier  of  Enniskillen. 

2  The  Hon.  Cornwallis  escaped,  together  with  Conway,  any  further 
penalty.  He  rose  to  be  Lieutenant-General  and  died  Governor  of  Gibraltar, 
1776. 


838     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

manded  by  Lieutenant-Colonel  Lafausille.  The  latter  officer  had 
spent  most  of  the  time  between  the  20th  and  29th  September  in 
his  cabin  suffering  from  lumbago.  Disgusted  with  the  whole  affair, 
the  old  General  wrote  to  his  lieutenant-colonel  for  a  report. 
Lafausille,  perhaps  equally  disgusted,  referred  the  General  to  his 
son.  Lafausille  and  Wolfe  had  long  been  friends,  but  this  was  a 
little  more  than  the  new  Colonel  could  brook. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Blackheath,  2Uh  October,  1757. 

Dear  Sir, — 'Tis  an  admirable  circumstance  for  Lafausille  to 
ask  me  about  an  expedition  that  he  himself  was  engaged  in. 
His  lumbago  left  him  very  a  propos  for  just  as  he  got  to  the 
Basque  Road  he  revived.  One's  native  air  has  surprising  effects  ! 
All  that  I  can  tell  about  it  is,  that  we  blundered  most  egre- 
giously  on  all  sides — sea  and  land  ;  that  we  lost  three  days  with- 
out and  three  within,  and  consequently  couldn't  propose  to  march 
to  Paris  this  season.  I  believe  the  country  is  not  able  to  bear 
many  jokes  of  this  sort ;  nor  have  the  fleets  and  arms  of  this 
nation  reputation  enough  to  excuse  now  and  then  a  faux  pas. 
However,  let  justice  be  done  to  the  executive  part ;  the  sea- 
men and  soldiers  in  general  were  most  desirous  and  most  earnest 
for  employment.  These  disappointments,  I  hope,  won't  affect 
their  courage  ;  nothing,  I  think,  can  hurt  their  discipline — it  is 
at  its  worst.  They  shall  drink  and  swear,  plunder  and  massacre 
with  any  troops  in  Europe,  the  Cossacks  and  Calmucks  them- 
selves not  excepted  ;  with  this  difference,  that  they  have  not 
quite  so  violent  an  appetite  for  blood  and  bonfires. 

Sir  John  Ligonier's  commission,  appointing  him  Commander- 
in-Chief  of  the  armies  of  Britain,  is  come  out,  or  to  come  out 
suddenly  under  the  broad  seal  of  England.  I  shall  pay  my  duty 
to  our  new  General,  and  inform  myself  whether  I  may  set  out  for 
Ireland  or  not,  taking  the  Bath  in  my  way.  I  dine  with  Sir 
Gregory  ^  to-morrow  ;  he  and  my  Lady  Page  are  veiy  solicitous 
for  your  welfare. 

But  it  is  in  the  letter  to  Rickson  that  Wolfe  opens  up  his  heart 
about  the  Rochefort  expedition — 

^  Sir  Gregory  Page,  Bart.,  a  wealthy  Indian  merchant,  whose  splendid 
seat,  Wricklesmarsh,  was  near  Blackheath.  On  Sir  Gregory's  death  in  1775, 
his  nephew  and  heir  sold  the  estate,  the  mansion  was  pulled  down  and  the 
pictures  and  sculpture  dispersed. 


ROCHEFORT   CRITICISED  339 

To  Major  Rickson. 

Blackheath,  6th  November ^  VJ5>I. 

Dear  Rickson, — I  thank  you  very  heartily  for  your  welcome 
back.  I  am  not  sorry  that  I  went,  notwithstanding  what  has 
happened ;  one  may  always  pick  up  something  useful  from 
amongst  the  most  fatal  errors.  I  have  found  out  that  an 
Admiral  should  endeavour  to  run  into  an  enemy''s  port  immedi- 
ately after  he  appears  before  it ;  that  he  should  anchor  the  trans- 
port ships  and  frigates  as  close  as  he  can  to  the  land  ;  that  he 
should  reconnoitre  and  observe  it  as  quick  as  possible,  and  lose 
no  time  in  getting  the  troops  on  shore  ;  that  previous  directions 
should  be  given  in  respect  to  landing  the  troops,  and  a  proper 
disposition  made  for  the  boats  of  all  sorts,  appointing  leaders  and 
fit  persons  for  conducting  the  different  divisions.  On  the  other 
hand,  experience  shows  me  that,  in  an  affair  depending  upon 
vigour  and  dispatch,  the  Generals  should  settle  their  plan  of 
operations,  so  that  no  time  may  be  lost  in  idle  debate  and  con- 
sultations when  the  sword  should  be  drawn  ;  that  pushing  on 
smartly  is  the  road  to  success,  and  more  particularly  so  in  an 
affair  of  this  nature  ;  that  nothing  is  to  be  reckoned  an  obstacle 
to  your  undertaking  which  is  not  found  really  so  upon  trial ; 
that  in  war  something  must  be  allowed  to  chance  and  fortune, 
seeing  it  is  in  its  nature  hazardous,  and  an  option  of  difficulties ; 
that  the  greatness  of  an  object  should  come  under  consideration, 
opposed  to  the  impediments  that  lie  in  the  way  ;  that  the  honour 
on  one"'s  country  is  to  have  some  weight ;  and  that,  in  particular 
circumstances  and  times,  the  loss  of  a  thousand  men  is  rather 
an  advantage  to  a  nation  than  otherwise,  seeing  that  gallant 
attempts  raise  its  reputation  and  make  it  respectable  ;  whereas 
the  contrary  appearances  sink  the  credit  of  a  country,  ruin 
the  troops,  and  create  infinite  uneasiness  and  discontent  at 
home. 

I  know  not  what  to  say,  my  dear  Rickson,  or  how  to  account 
for  our  proceedings,  imless  I  own  to  you  that  there  never  was 
people  collected  together  so  unfit  for  the  business  they  were  sent 
upon — dilatory,  ignorant,  irresolute,  and  some  grains  of  a  very 
unmanly  quality,  and  very  unsoldier-like  or  unsailor-like.  I  have 
already  been  too  imprudent ;  I  have  said  too  much,  and  people 
make  me  say  ten  times  more  than  I  ever  uttered ;  therefore, 
repeat  nothing  out  of  my  letter,  nor  name  my  name  as  author  of 
any  one  thing.  The  whole  affair  turned  upon  the  impracticability 
of  escalading  Rochefort ;  and  the  two  evidences  brought  to  prove 

Z  2 


340    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

that  the  ditch  was  wet  (in  opposition  to  the  assertions  of  the 
chief  engineer,  who  had  been  in  the  place)  are  persons  to  whom, 
in  my  mind,  very  little  credit  should  be  given  ;  without  these 
evidences  we  should  have  landed,  and  must  have  marched  to 
Rochefort,  and  it  is  my  opinion  that  the  place  would  have 
surrendered,  or  have  been  taken,  in  forty-eight  hours.  It  is  cer- 
tain that  there  was  nothing  in  all  that  country  to  oppose  9000 
good  Foot — a  million  of  Protestants,  upon  whom  it  is  necessary 
to  keep  a  strict  eye,  so  that  the  garrison  could  not  venture  to 
assemble  against  us,  and  no  troops,  except  the  militia,  within  any 
moderate  distance  of  these  parts. 

Little  practice  in  war,  ease  and  convenience  at  home,  great 
incomes,  and  no  wants,  with  no  ambition  to  stir  to  action  are  not 
the  instruments  to  work  a  successful  war  withal ;  I  see  no  prospect 
of  better  deeds.  I  know  not  where  to  look  for  them,  or  from 
whom  we  may  expect  them.  Many  handsome  things  would  have 
been  done  by  the  troops  had  they  been  permitted  to  act.  As  it 
is,  Captain  Howe  carried  off  all  the  honour  of  his  enterprise  .  .  . 
notwithstanding  that  scribbling  .  .  .  been  pleased  to  lie  about 
that  fort  and  the  attack  of  it. 

This  disaster  in  North  America,^  unless  the  French  have  driven 
from  their  anchors  in  the  harbour  of  Louisbourg,  is  of  the  most 
fatal  kind  ;  whatever  diminishes  our  naval  force  tends  to  our 
ruin  and  destruction.  God  forbid  that  any  accident  should 
befall  our  fleet  in  the  bay !  The  Duke's  resignation  may  be 
reckoned  an  addition  to  our  misfortunes  ;  he  acted  a  right  part, 
but  the  country  will  suffer  by  it. 

Yours,  my  dear  Rickson, 

Very  Affectionately, 

J.  W. 

Of  this  letter  a  modern  critic  of  strategy,  especially  of  naval 
warfare,  remarks — 

"  It  would  be  impossible  to  measure  with  more  masterly  suc- 
cinctness the  sacred  principles,  both  practical  and  moral,  which 
should  govern  such  an  expedition.  The  whole  is  a  priceless  docu- 
ment, coming  as  it  does  from  the  hand  of  one  who  was  to  carry 
those  principles  to  such  glorious  fruition.'"  He  adds  with  reference 
to  warfare  to-day,  that  "  every  commander  to  whom  such  operations 
are  committed,  might  do  worse  than  lay  it  under  his  pillow.*"  ^ 

1  The  capture  by  the  French  under  Montcalm  of  Fort  William  Henry 
and  the  subsequent  massacre.     See  post,  p.  443. 

2  Corbett,  England  in  the  Seven  Years'  War. 


GIVES   HIS   EVIDENCE  341 

Two  or  three  days  after  Wolfe  wrote  Rickson  a  Board  of 
Inquiry  into  the  Rochefort  Expedition  met.  To  Wolfe,  who  was 
summoned  to  give  evidence,  nothing  could  have  been  more  dis- 
tasteful. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Blackheath,  8  November ,  1757. 

Deae  Madam, — My  not  hearing  from  Bath  does  not  alarm  me 
so  much  as  it  does  some  of  the  neighbourhood,  for  they  do  not 
know  that  your  fingers  won't  always  obey  your  inclinations,  and 
that  the  General  desires  to  be  excused  from  the  trouble.  I  have 
been  told  that  you  were  both  in  the  rooms  lately,  which  makes 
me  easy  about  your  health  ;  it  proves  the  efficacy  and  goodness 
of  your  medicine,  and  I  hope  you  will  persevere  in  the  use  of  it, 
as  long  as  it  can  be  of  the  least  service  to  you. 

I  have  a  summons  to  attend  the  Board  of  General  Officers,  who 
are  appointed  to  enquire  into  the  causes  of  the  failure  of  the 
late  expedition  ;  they  begin  their  examination  to-morrow,  and  I 
suppose  will  not  end  it  soon.  Better  and  more  honourable  for 
the  country  if  the  one  half  of  us  had  gone  the  great  road  of 
mortality  together,  than  to  be  plagued  with  inquiries  and 
censures  and  the  cry  of  the  world. 

I  wish  you  both  well — beg  my  duty  to  the  General  and  am, 
dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Bath,  Somerset. 

The  board  consisted  of  Lieutenant-General  the  Duke  of  Marl- 
borough, Major-General  Lord  George  Sackville,  and  Major-General 
Waldegrave,  and  before  them  when  they  assembled  at  the  house  of 
the  Judge  Advocate- General  appeared  the  delinquents  Mordaunt, 
Conway,  and  Cornwallis.     Not  until  the  14th  was  Wolfe  examined. 

Colonel  Wolfe  was  then  called  in  at  the  General's  request  and 
examined  as  to  his  opinion  about  landing  and  the  attack  of  Fort 
Fouras,  which  was  intended  as  a  place  of  retreat  if  the  troops  should 
not  succeed  in  the  attack  of  Rochefort.  On  this  examination  the 
Colonel  said  the  men  might  have  landed  near  Chatelaiellon  notwith- 
standing the  battery  of  six  guns  at  Fouras  Point ;  but  that  their 
landing  might  have  been  prevented  by  so  small  a  force  as  one 
thousand  foot  and  three  or  four  hundred  horse,  because  there  were 
many  sandhills,  which  the  forces  at  landing  would  be  obliged  to 


342    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

climb.  As  to  Fort  Fouras,  he  said  it  was  his  opinion  that  it 
might  have  been  carried  by  storm,  as  to  the  best  of  his  knowledge 
it  was  a  weak  one,  there  being  only  a  platform  of  twenty-four 
embrasures  toward  the  water  side,  and  as  it  was  on  a  peninsula  it 
might  be  attacked  on  all  sides,  while  the  ships  lay  before  it ; 
that  Howe  had  offered  to  take  it  with  his  ship,  and  that  he 
proposed  a  feint  towards  Rochelle  and  the  isle  of  Rhe  during  the 
landing  and  attack.  The  Colonel  was  then  ordered  to  withdraw, 
and  the  board  proceeded  to  the  examination  of  Admiral  Knowles, 
who  affirmed  that  Fouras  could  not  be  annoyed  or  battered  by  the 
ships,  for  that  a  bomb  could  not  be  thrown  more  than  two  miles 
and  three-quarters.^ 

On  the  21st  the  board  rendered  its  report  to  the  King.  The 
expedition  against  Rochefort  had  been  frustrated,  chiefly,  they  said, 
because  the  plan  of  attacking  Fort  Fouras  by  sea  and  land  simul- 
taneously had  not  been  followed.  This  plan  of  Colonel  Wolfe''s 
"  certainly  must  have  been  of  the  greatest  utility  towards  carrying 
your  Majesty's  instructions  into  execution.''  ^ 

Another  cause  of  the  failxu'e  was  that  "  instead  of  attempting  to 
land  when  the  report  was  received  on  the  24th  of  September  from 
Rear- Admiral  Brodrick  and  the  captains  who  had  been  sent  out  to 
sound  and  reconnoitre,  a  council  of  war  was  summoned  and  held  on 
the  25th  in  which  it  was  unanimously  resolved  not  to  land,"  although 
there  were  neither  troops  nor  batteries  on  shore  to  prevent  such  a 
landing.  As  to  the  council  of  war  on  the  28th,  the  board  foimd 
that  "  no  reason  could  have  existed  sufficient  to  prevent  the  attempt 
of  landing  the  troops  previous  to  that  day,  as  the  council  then 
unanimously  resolved  to  land  with  all  possible  dispatch."  There 
were  other  contributory  causes,  but  in  the  board's  opinion  the 
expedition  had  failed  from  the  time  the  great  object  of  it  was  laid 
aside  in  the  council  of  war  on  the  25th.^ 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Blackheath;,  1st  December,  Vl6*J. 
Dear  Madam, — I  could  not  tell  what  was  to  become  of  me 
when  I  left  Portsmouth,  because  I  did  not  know ;  but  finding 

1  Gentleman^ s  Magazine,  1757,  p.  491. 
a  Ihid.,  p.  628. 

2  It  is  interesting  to  read  that  "  the  inquiry  being  ended.  Lord  George 
Sackville  made  a  short  speech  signifying  that  the  most  disagreeable  thing, 
neoct  to  being  tried  himself,  was  that  of  being  appointed  to  sit  on  an  inquiry  into 
the  conduct  of  gentlemen  whose  courage  and  fidelity  had  been  so  often  tried." 
In  less  than  three  years  Sackville  was  himself  court-martialled  and  expelled 
from  the  army. 


MORDAUNT   ILL  343 

myself  confined  to  the  neighbourhood  of  London,  and  not  being 
able  to  live  there  altogether,  partly  for  health,  and  partly 
to  save  trouble,  I  came  here.  Mrs.  Scott  ^  assisted  me  with 
the  few  things  that  were  wanting.  My  demands  were  very 
moderate,  and  the  way  of  life  here  is  exemplary,  and  without 
vanity  I  may  say  there  is  as  good  order  almost,  preserved  in 
your  family,  in  every  respect,  as  if  you  yourself  presided.  I  lie 
in  your  chamber,  dress  myself  in  the  GeneraPs  little  parlour,  and 
dine  where  you  did.  The  most  perceptible  difference  and  change 
of  affairs  (exclusive  of  the  bad  table  I  keep)  is  the  number  of 
dogs  in  the  yard  ;  but  by  coaxing  Ball,  and  by  rubbing  his  back 
with  my  stick,  I  have  reconciled  myself  with  the  new  ones,  and 
put  'em  in  some  measure  under  his  protection.  For  this  fort- 
night past  I  have  lodgings  in  town,  and  live  for  the  most  part 
there ;  and  am  glad  when  a  fine  day  invites  me  to  get  on 
horseback  and  come  here.  My  servants,  clothes,  etc.,  are 
all  in  London.  When  I  mean  to  dine  here,  Ambrose,  who 
is  my  running  footman,  comes  before  upon  his  legs  (for 
we  have  Crichton's  borrowed  horse  between  us),  and  gets  me 
something  to  eat.  The  next  day  he  runs  back  with  the  same 
alacrity,  and  by  that  means  preserves  his  own  health  and  my 
money. 

This  Court  of  Inquiry  has  kept  us  close,  and  now  they  talk 
of  a  general  court-martial  to  try  Sir  John  Mordaunt,  who  is  in 
such  a  miserable  state  of  health  that  I  don't  believe  he  will  go 
through  with  it.  Till  that  is  over  I'm  still  a  prisoner,  expecting, 
as  before,  to  be  called  upon  in  evidence.  When  my  family  was 
here,  Nelly  made  soup  and  Monsieur  Fran9ois  made  houilli ;  so, 
between  your  maids  and  my  men,  I  lived  very  elegantly  and  very 
cheap.  To-morrow  I  dine  tete-a-tete  in  London,  with  my  old 
friend  Rich,  who  wants  to  know  the  short  history  of  the  expe- 
dition. At  night  I  am  to  meet  his  guest,  who  is  sent  by  the 
King  of  Prussia  :  Mr.  Keith,^  our  late  envoy  at  Vienna  ;  a  son  of 
Field-Marshall  Count  Lacy's  ;  and  Colonel  Clarke,  the  engineer. 

^  To  Mrs.  Elizabeth  Scott,  mother  of  Major  Scott,  Mrs.  Wolfe  on  her 
death  bequeathed  an  annuity  of  £30. 

1  The  Prussian  envoy  was  Major  Grant,  aide-de-camp  to  Marshal  Keith, 
who  arrived  with  dispatches  announcing  the  victory  of  Rosbach  on  the 
5th  of  November.  Robert  Keith  was  made  Ambassador  to  Russia  in  1758. 
and  died  in  1774.  Count  Lacey,  whose  son  is  here  mentioned,  was  of 
Irish  extraction,  and  a  General  in  the  Austrian  service.  He  was  brother  of 
the  Miss  Lacey  to  whom  Wolfe  wrote  just  a  decade  before.  Colonel  Clarke 
was  the  author  of  the  original  report  which  led  to  the  Rochefort  expedition 
(see  ante,  p.  320). 


344     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

These,  with  myself,  make  five  very  odd  characters,  and  for  the 
oddity  of  the  mixture  I  mention  it  to  you. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  court-martial  of  Mordaunt  duly  took  place,  but  the  imhappy 
General's  state  of  health  and  the  uncertainty  whether  Hawke  was 
not  equally  deserving  of  censure,  perhaps  also  Pitt's  desire  not  to 
press  matters  further  now  that  the  lesson  had  been  laid  to  heart  by 
the  joint  services,  resulted  in  his  acquittal.  For  a  week  the  King 
hesitated  over  approving  the  verdict,  but  eventually  acquiesced. 

Before  the  Christmas  holidays,  according  to  his  practice  when- 
ever possible,  Wolfe  rejoined  his  parents,  who  were  then  at  Bath. 
The  General  was  seriously  considering  taking  a  house  at  that 
fashionable  resort.  His  fighting  days  were  over,  and  gout  crept 
upon  him  apace.  While  at  Bath,  Wolfe  is  deeply  interested  in 
the  progress  of  his  new  regiment,  and  delighted  to  get  letters  from 
one  of  the  trustiest  of  his  captains,  Henry  Parr,  then  recruiting  at 
Wigan,  Lancashire.  Parr  writes  to  tell  him  he  is  meeting  with 
extra  success  owing  to  the  reputation  Wolfe  has,  by  his  late 
conduct,  gained  for  himself. 

To  Captain  Parr. 

Bath,  2Qth  December,  1757. 
"•^  Dear  Parr, — I  must  proceed  in  a  regular  way  to  answer 
your  letters,  but  concisely,  because,  like  other  great  men,  I  have 
many  to  answer,  and  much  business  upon  my  hands.  I  have 
always  time  enough  to  read  a  friend's  letter,  therefore  pray  no 
attempt  hereafter  to  excuse  yourself  from  writing  upon  the 
supposition  that  I  have  not  leisure  to  read.  I  look  upon  the 
proceedings  of  the  Bay  of  Biscay  as  flowing  from  natural  causes, 
and  could  have  told  you  in  the  Isle  of  Wight  (what  I  actually 
did  to  some  who  were  in  the  secret),  either  that  we  should 
attempt  nothing,  or  execute  ill  what  we  did  attempt.  I  will  be 
open  enough  and  vain  enough  to  tell  you  that  there  might  be 
a  lucky  moment  to  be  seized  for  the  public  service,  which  I 
watched  for  ;  but  it  came  too  late,  and  there  ended  the  reputation 
of  three  bad  Generals.     You  must  burn  this  insolent  letter. 

Your  success  gives  me  double  satisfaction,  for  the  regiment 
and  for  yourself,  and  I  know  full  well  that  you  will  omit  nothing 
that  may  tend  to  improve  or  to  continue  it.  I  thank  God  our 
officers,  and  those  who  have  left  us,  profess  a  sense  of  duty  and 


GEORGE   THE   THIRD  345 

spirit  that  needs  no  quickening,  nor  urging.  I  explained  the 
nature  of  our  discipline  some  days  ago,  to  the  Prince  of  Wales, 
who  is  extremely  desirous  of  being  informed  of  these  sort  of 
things.  I  told  him  that  there  was  in  the  corps  a  necessary 
degree  of  obedience,  joined  with  high  spirit  of  service  and  love 
of  duty,  which  he  appeared  to  be  greatly  pleased,  knowing  well 
that  from  good  indications,  joined  with  order  and  discipline, 
great  military  performances  usually  spring. 

As  I  profess  to  introduce  as  many  yomig  gentlemen  as  I 
possibly  can  into  the  service,  and  to  exclude  canaille  as  much  as 
in  me  lies,  I  am  ready  to  give  all  possible  assistance  to  the  young 
man  you  speak  of.  I  shall  be  glad  to  see  him  in  London,  and 
will  put  him  in  a  way  of  succeeding  as  he  desires ;  but  his 
relations  should  beware  of  sending  him  too  soon  into  the  world, 
and  more  especially  as  he  has  not  some  steady  friend  in  London, 
by  whose  advice  he  may  be  guided,  and  by  whose  authority  he 
may  be  led.  A  good  education  is  the  first  thing  to  be  thought 
of;  after  that,  a  profession  suited  to  the  inclinations  or  abilities 
of  the  young  man.  In  the  army,  as  well  as  in  other  professions, 
learning  is  absolutely  necessary,  and  a  year  or  two  of  improve- 
ment is  better  than  one  with  the  insignificant  duty  of  the  capital. 
You  did  not  name  the  tutor  in  your  letter.  As  to  the  Roman 
Catholic,  if  he  is  young  and  expresses  a  great  desire  to  serve,  I 
would  overlook  his  mistake  in  point  of  faith.  Maybe,  by  our 
good  doctrine,  life,  and  example,  we  may  work  his  conversion ! 
One  thing  is  certain,  that  we  shall  shake  his  present  belief, 
whether  we  give  him  better  and  sounder  notions  or  not. 

Yours  affectionately, 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  interest  of  the  foregoing  letter  is  in  the  allusion  to  Wolfe's 
meeting  with  the  patriotic  and  noble-hearted  prince  who  afterwards 
became  George  III.  Always  taking  a  deep  interest  in  the  progress 
of  the  nation's  arms,  the  Prince  had  sent  for  the  Colonel  to  come 
to  Leicester  Fields  and  give  him  a  full  account  of  Rochefort.  In 
fact,  Wolfe  was  getting  to  be  a  little  sick  of  Rochefort,  so  many 
people  there  were  wanting  to  know  the  exact  story  of  that  ^vretched 
business.  But  he  could  not  but  be  sensible  to  the  honour  done 
him  by  the  heir-apparent,  who  afterwards  testified  to  his  regret 
that  fate  had  claimed  him  before  he  could  shed  lustre  on  his  own 
reign.  We  to-day  may  ask  ourselves  what  would  have  happened 
had   Wolfe   survived   to   be   the  protagonist   of  Washington   in 


346     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

America !  How  differently  would  the  scroll  of  history  be  written  ! 
The  blunders  of  Gage  and  Howe  and  Clinton  and  Cornwallis  would 
at  least  never  have  been  perpetrated  by  Wolfe,  to  whom  war  was 
always  war  conducted  with  zeal,  elan^  and  knowledge,  no  matter 
/who  the  adversary. 

Wolfe's  eye  was  always  upon  America.  His  letters  show  that 
he  recognized  to  the  full  as  much  as  Pitt  that  yonder  was  the 
important  theatre  of  operations — that  there  and  not  elsewhere  the 
destinies  of  Europe  must  be  fought  out.  And  in  America,  where 
the  French  and  English  had  been  pitted  against  each  other  for 
months,  the  failure  of  the  King's  army  was  hardly  less  conspicuous 
than  it  had  been  in  Europe.     The  results,  indeed,  were  far  worse. 

At  present  the  Earl  of  Loudoun  was  Commander-in-Chief  in 
America,  whither  he  had  been  sent  the  previous  year.  But  Loudoun, 
on  his  arrival  late  in  the  summer,  quickly  showed  that  he  was  no 
dashing  soldier.  While  he  did  nothing  but  garrison  a  few  forts 
the  French  showed  more  initiative,  and  with  their  redskin  allies 
kept  up  a  fierce  guerilla  warfare  all  winter.  Settlements  were 
raided  and  burnt,  English  settlers  were  scalped  or  carried  off. 
Moreover,  the  French  in  Canada  were  now  under  the  direction  of 
an  able,  experienced  and  sympathetic  soldier,  later  ordained  by 
destiny  to  be  the  great  protagonist  of  the  hero  of  these  pages, 
Louis  Joseph  de  St.  Veran,  Marquis  de  Montcalm. 

In  the  summer  of  1757  Montcalm  marched  his  troops  towards 
Fort  William  Henry,  which  was  the  outpost  of  the  Colonies 
towards  Canada,  and  driving  the  British  army  under  Webb  before 
him,  attacked  and  captured  the  stronghold. 

This  success  naturally  put  the  French  in  high  feather  and 
correspondingly  depressed  the  British  in  America.  The  latter 
everywhere  began  to  feel  that  a  victory  was  necessary  to  restore 
their  prestige. 

The  French  power  in  America  was  intolerable,  and  must  be 
annihilated.  "  In  America,"  wrote  Pitt  to  his  colleague,  Newcastle, 
"  England  and  Europe  were  to  be  fought  for."  To  attempt  this 
operation  on  a  more  extensive  scale  than  it  had  ever  been  attempted 
was  reserved  for  Chatham.  He  resolved  to  leave  no  stone  im- 
turned  that  would  achieve  his  end.  Loudoun's  incapacity  being 
manifest,  that  General  was  therefore  recalled,  and  an  entirely  new 
scheme  of  campaign  devised,  as  well  as  instruments  to  carry  it  out. 
In  this  scheme  three  objects  were  comprehended,  the  separate 
reduction  of  Fort  du  Quesne,  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  and 
Louisbourg.     The  first  two  tasks  were  entrusted  respectively  to 


LOUISBOURG   PLANNED  347 

Brigadier  Forbes,  Loudoun''s  successor,  and  to  General  Abercrombie. 
As  to  the  third  object,  the  nature  of  the  undertaking  made  the 
choice  of  leaders  far  more  difficult  and  important.  Louisbourg 
must  be  regained.  Upon  this  fortress,  built  1720-30,  it  was  the 
boast  of  the  French  that  a  million  and  a  quarter  sterling  had  been 
expended.  It  was  regarded  from  its  position  on  the  island  of  Cape 
Breton  as  the  key  to  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence  and  the  bulwark  of 
Canada.  Although  supposed  to  be  impregnable,  yet  it  had  been 
captured  by  a  New  England  force  in  1745,  owing  to  the  feebleness 
of  the  garrison  ;  but  three  years  later  it  had  been  restored  to 
France,  a  proceeding  much  against  the  grain  of  popular  opinion.^ 

The  military  force  of  11,000  destined  for  Louisbourg  was  less 
than  Abercrombie''s,  but  it  was  to  be  a  naval  as  well  as  a  military 
expedition.  It  must  not  prove  another  Rochefort.  Moreover,  if 
Louisbourg  were  taken  with  dispatch,  the  combined  naval  and 
military  force  was  designed  to  move  at  once  on  Quebec. 

To  Admiral  Edward  Boscawen  the  minister  entrusted  the  naval 
part  of  the  business  with  some  confidence ;  but  he  was  resolved  to 
have  nothing  to  do  with  the  titled  incapables  pressed  upon  him  by 
the  War  Office  authorities.  In  Colonel  Jeffrey  Amherst,  late  com- 
missary to  the  Hessian  contingent  in  British  pay,  he  believed  he 
had  an  officer  who  would  do  his  work.  Under  Amherst,  forthwith 
created  a  Major-General,  three  brigadiers  were  appointed,  Whit- 
more  (Governor  of  Nova  Scotia),  Lawrence  (commander  of  the  New 
York  contingent),  and  James  Wolfe  (at  present  a  Brevet-Colonel). 

From  Exeter  the  new  Brigadier  wrote. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Exeter,  7  Jan.,  1757. 
Dear  Madam, — Part  in  chaise  and  part  on  horseback  I  got 
myself  conveyed  to  this  place  yesterday  by  2  o'clock  ;  and  this 
morning  received  a  letter  from  London,  that  hurries  me  back  to 
town.  I  set  out  to-morrow  at  6  o'clock  and  shall  hardly  stop 
till  I  arrive  at  the  great  capital.  Necessity  obliged  me  to  ride 
the  same  post  horses  for  three  and  thirty  miles,  till  we  were  all 
heartily  tired ;  and  till  my  skin  was  thoroughly  laid  bare — 
however  with  the  help  of  cooling  diachylum,  I  shall  proceed  with 
all  dispatch,  and  give  you  the  earliest  notice  of  my  journeys  end. 
The  taking  of  Breslau  completes  the  ruin  of  the  Austrian  arms,^ 

1  Louisbourg,  we  have  been  reminded,  was  to  French  Canada  what  Port 
Arthur  was  lately  to  Russia  in  Eastern  Asia. 

2  Breslau  had  surrendered  to  Frederick  on  December  19,  following  upon 
the  battle  of  Leuthen. 


348    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

and  before  the  month  of  June,  I  conclude  that  the  French  will 
be  driven  over  the  Rhine. 

My  duty  to  my  father.  I  hope  I  did  not  disturb  your  pretty 
neighbours — you  will  be  so  good  to  make  my  excuses  for  any 
little  annoyance  of  that  sort  unavoidable,  though  I  gave  strict 
orders  not  to  interrupt  their  sleep. 

Your  affect,  son, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 
Bath. 

This  reference  to  Mrs.  Wolfe's  pretty  neighbours  is  interesting 
in  that  one  of  them  was  none  other  than  the  beautiful  and  accom- 
plished Miss  Katherine  Lowther,  sister  of  Sir  James  Lowther, 
afterwards  first  Earl  of  Lonsdale,  a  lady  whose  name  will  ever 
be  linked  with  Wolfe's  own. 

Wolfe's  journey  from  Exeter  to  London  was  an  almost  record- 
breaking  performance.  The  reason  of  his  haste  and  an  account  of 
his  journey  he  gives  in  his  next  letter. 

To  HIS  Father, 

London,  Qth  January,  1768. 

Dear  Sir, — You  won't  expect  to  hear  from  me  so   soon, 
though  you  will  not  be  much  surprised  at  the  celerity  of  my 
movements.     Yesterday  at  five  o'clock,  I  left  Exeter,  and  was  in 
town  this  day  by  one, — the  distance  170  miles.     I  have  seen 
nobody  about  business  except  Carleton,  who  informs  me  that 
things  are  going  on.     I  met  Amherst's  regiment  upon  the  march 
towards   Portsmouth ;    the  first   division   at  Bagshot.     It  was 
pretty  dark  last  night,  and  I  was  obliged  to  have  lights  all  over 
Salisbury  Plain.     About  midway  our  candle  went  out,  and  we 
seemed   at  a  stand,   when  the  provident  Fran9ois  provided  a 
tinder-box,  struck  a  light,  and  we  proceeded  happily  to  our 
journey's    end.     He  oflers  his  services  to  go  along  with   me, 
which  I  am  glad  to  accept  of,  and  so  my  equippage  stands 
complete.     I  was  hurried  from  Exeter  by  a  letter,  intimating 
the   sudden  departure  of  our  forces  for  North  America.     To- 
morrow will  fix  my  affairs,  and  in  a  few  days  my  baggage  will 
begin  to  move.     Prince  Ferdinand  retires  before  the  French,  who 
have  passed  the  AUer  in  force. 

His   friend  Rickson  had  been  for  some  time   performing   the 
duties  of  Deputy  Quartermaster-General  in  Scotland  and  was  very 


EVER  READY  TO   SERVE  349 

anxious  to  procure  the  regular  appointment.    The  second  paragraph 
of  Wolfe's  letter  to  him  is  in  his  most  reckless  vein. 

To  Major  Rickson. 

Blackheath,  12th  January,  1768. 
Dear  Rickson, — 

My  services  in  this  matter,  and  my  credit  with  the  reigning 
powers,  are  not  worth  your  acceptance  ;  but  such  as  they  allow 
it  to  be,  you  are  as  welcome  to  as  any  living  man.  I  can  assure 
you  that  Davy  [Watson]  is  double,  and  would  shove  you  aside  to 
make  way  for  a  tenth  cousin  :  it  becomes  my  Lord  G.  Beauclerk 
to  confirm  you  in  your  office  by  asking  and  procuring  a  com- 
mission. If  he  is  satisfied  with  your  management,  it  is  his  duty 
to  do  it ;  these  mealy  chiefs  give  up  their  just  rights,  and  with 
them  their  necessary  authority.  The  Commander  in  Scotland 
is  the  fittest  person  to  recommend,  and  the  best  judge  of  the 
merits  of  those  that  serve  under  him. 

Though  to  all  appearance  I  am  in  the  very  centre  of  business, 
yet  nobody  (from  the  indolent  inattention  of  my  temper)  knows 
less  of  what  is  going  on  where  I  myself  am  not  concerned.  The 
proceedings  in  Parliament,  intrigues  of  the  parties,  and  the 
management  of  public  affairs,  are  as  much  unknown  to  me  as  the 
business  of  a  divan  or  seraglio.  I  live  amongst  men  without 
desiring  to  be  acquainted  with  their  concerns  ;  things  have  their 
ordinary  course,  and  I  pass  on  with  the  current  unheeding. 
Being  of  the  profession  of  arms,  I  would  seek  all  occasions  to 
serve,  and  therefore  have  thrown  myself  in  the  way  of  the 
American  war ;  though  I  know  that  the  very  passage  threatens 
my  life,  and  that  my  constitution  must  be  utterly  ruined  and 
undone,  and  this  from  no  motive  either  of  avarice  or  ambition. 

I  am,  dear  Rickson,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Mother. 

Blackheath,  Vjth  January^  1758. 

Dear  Madam, — I  seldom  have  business  enough  to  excuse  my 
not  writing  to  you,  and  now  have  as  little  as  most  men.  The 
public  affairs  are  pretty  much  fixed,  and  my  private  matters  are 
so  far  advanced  that  I  reckon  to  be  ready  at  least  as  soon  as  the 
squadron,  which  will  hardly  be  in  a  condition  to  be  put  to  sea 
till  the  latter  end  of  next  week,  or  the  beginning  of  the  follow- 
ing one.  The  GeneraFs  letter  of  credit  has  enabled  me  to  pro- 
ceed vigorously,  and  the  more  so  as  my  coiTespondent  in  Ireland 


350    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

aff'ects  some  delay,  which,  without  the  timely  interposition  of 
Mr.  Fisher  might  prejudice  or  check  my  proceedings.^  The  two 
gentlemen  with  whom  I  transact  business  in  that  Kingdom,  do 
not,  I  think,  use  me  quite  kindly,  as  one  who  has  not  neglected 
their  interests  might  well  expect ;  but  the  members  of  a  corrupt 
office  are  seldom  free  from  the  infection,  and  we  are  to  look  for 
such  fruit  as  the  soil  and  cultivation  naturally  produce. 

I  don''t  deserve  so  much  consideration  or  concern  as  my 
father  and  you  are  so  good  as  to  express  for  me.  He  wishes 
rank  for  me  ;  and  you,  my  preservation.  All  I  wish  for  myself 
is,  that  I  may  at  all  times  be  ready  and  firm  to  meet  that  fate 
we  cannot  shun,  and  to  die  gracefully  and  properly  when  the 
hour  comes,  now  or  hereafter.  A  small  portion  of  the  good 
things  of  this  world  will  fully  satisfy  my  utmost  desire.  I  would 
not  be  tempted  to  set  an  unjust  value  upon  life ;  nor  would  I 
wish  to  be  thrown  in  the  way  of  those  trials  which  nature 
has  not  provided  for.  I  mean  that  it  would  give  me  some 
concern  to  rise  into  a  station  that  I  knew  myself  unequal  to. 
Upon  recollection,  it  costs  me  dear  to  serve.  d^200  the  last 
affair ;  d^500  or  £600  now ;  and  an  employment  that  I  am 
about  to  resign,  so  that  if  we  should  miscarry,  my  condition 
will  be  desperate,  and  my  finances  exhausted.  The  ladies,  too, 
will  despise  a  beaten  lover,  so  that  every  way  I  must  be  im- 
done.  And  yet  I  am  run  readily,  heartily,  and  cheerfully  into 
the  road  of  ruin.  If  my  thoughts  could  be  greatly  diverted 
from  their  present  object,  the  youngest  of  your  neighbours 
might  rival  my  Lady  Bath.  My  duty  to  the  General.  I 
wish  you  both  all  happiness. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  is  evident  that  his  thoughts  are  even  now  beginning  to  turn 
towards  Miss  Lowther,  but  Cupid  with  him  always  gives  way  to 
the  behests  of  Mars. 

To  Major  Walter  Wolfe. 

Blackheath^  2lst  January,  1758. 

Dear  Sir, — ^Though  I  have  no  reason  to  love  the  seas,  or  to 
wish  to  be  employed  upon  expeditions  of  any  kind,  since  I  do 
not  enjoy  one  hour's  health  from  the  moment  I  go  on  board  till 
my  return,  and  am  not  only  disabled  from  all  kinds  of  busi- 
ness, but  suffer  pain  that  cannot  be  expressed  ;  yet  I  readily 
1  His  pay  as  Quartermaster-General. 


MADE   A   BRIGADIER  351 

engage  in  anything  that  is  going  on,  for  the  sake  of  employ- 
ment, flattering  myself  that  in  time  I  shall  be  able  to  over- 
come it,  though  hitherto  I  have  found  no  relief.  Another 
motive,  too,  pushes  me  on,  which  is,  the  desire  of  seeing  some 
favourable  change  in  our  affairs,  and  the  ambition  of  contri- 
buting something  towards  it.  This  far  outweighs  all  consider- 
ations of  advantage  to  myself,  and  gives  me  patience  to  bear  my 
sufferings  at  sea.  The  King  has  honoured  me  with  the  rank  of 
Brigadier  in  America,  which  I  cannot  but  consider  as  a  peculiar 
mark  of  his  Majesty's  favour  and  confidence,  and  I  intend  to  do 
my  best  to  deserve  it.  The  squadron  is  almost  ready  to  sail ; 
by  the  end  of  this  month  I  reckon  we  shall  get  to  sea.  The 
reinforcements  from  England  and  Ireland  consist  of  about 
five-or-six-and-twenty  hundred  men,  two  very  good  battalions 
we  have,  and  the  rest  is  la  canaille  from  the  second  battalions 
upon  this  establishment.  The  regular  forces  in  America 
amount  already  to  upwards  of  20,000  men,  an  army  far  over- 
matching the  force  of  New  France,  and  which  undoubtedly 
should  conquer  Canada  in  two  campaigns,  if  it  was  possible  to 
subsist  so  great  a  corps  together. 

You  know  in  what  a  handsome  manner  the  Duke  of  Bed- 
ford had  offered  me  the  employment  of  Quartermaster-General 
of  Ireland.  The  handsomest  thing  I  can  do  in  return  is  to  resign 
it,  not  being  able  to  give  that  attention  to  it  which  the  Duke 
had  reason  to  expect,  and  had  a  right  to  expect  from  me. 
Accordingly  I  shall  resign  that  appointment  into  the  hands 
from  whence  I  had  it,  and  trust  to  Fortune  for  future  provision. 
She  is  no  great  friend  to  the  family,  but  has  distinguished  me  at 
times  by  her  smiles  and  favours ;  so  encouraged,  I  put  myself 
entirely  in  her  power.  I  am  totally  ignorant  of  the  state  of  om* 
private  concerns  here,  and  have  taken  no  precautions  in  case  any 
accident  should  happen  in  my  absence.  I  trust  you  will  give  the 
best  advice  to  my  mother,  and  such  assistance,  if  it  should  be 
wanted,  as  the  distance  between  you  will  permit.  I  mention  this 
as  the  General  seems  to  decline  apace,  and  narrowly  escaped 
being  carried  off  in  the  spring ;  and  that  proceeding  from  a 
cause  which  still  subsists  and  will  in  time  work  its  natural 
effects, — I  mean  his  excessive  indolence  and  inactivity.  On  my 
mother's  side  there  is  no  friendship  or  connection,  nor  do  I 
know  anybody  to  whom  she  can  apply  but  yourself.  She, 
poor  woman,  is  in  a  poor  state  of  health,  and  needs  the  care  of 


352    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

some  friendly  hand  to  prop  up  the  tottering  fabric.  She  has 
long  and  painful  fits  of  illness,  which,  by  succession  and 
inheritance,  are  likely  to  devolve  on  me,  since  I  feel  the  early 
symptoms  of  them.     I  wish  you  health  and  peace. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Five  days  after  the  date  of  this  letter  Wolfe  resigned  his  Irish 
appointment.  He  could  not,  he  said,  in  his  letter  to  Bedford,  give 
sufficient  attention  to  the  duties  now  that  the  King  had  been 
pleased  to  allow  him  to  serve  in  America.^ 

To  THE  Duke  of  Bedford. 

London,  January  26th,  1758. 

My  Lord, — The  manner  in  which  your  Grace  honoured  me 
with  the  employment  of  Quartermaster-General  of  Ireland,  would 
have  engaged  me  to  make  the  best  of  my  power,  in  that  my  duty 
and  inclinations  went  heartily  together,  and  should  have  been 
happy  in  every  opportunity  of  paying  the  readiest  obedience  to 
your  Grace's  commands ;  but,  as  his  Majesty  has  been  pleased 
to  allow  me  to  serve  him  in  America,  I  think  it  right  to  resign 
my  employment  in  Ireland  into  your  Grace's  hands,  from  whom 
I  received  it ;  and  to  whom  I  shall  upon  that,  and  upon  many 
other  accounts,  always  look  upon  myself  to  be  highly  indebted 
and  obliged.  It  is  a  mortification  to  have  been  so  long  in  that 
office,  and  so  useless,  and  the  more  especially  as  under  your 
Grace's  government  such  reformations  are  more  likely  to  be 
brought  about,  which  are  most  necessary.  Every  occasion  of 
paying  my  respects  to  your  Grace  and  of  acknowledging  with 
gratitude  the  favour  and  honour  you  have  done  me,  will  be  most 
readily  embraced  by  me. 

I  beg  to  be  permitted  to  offer  your  Grace  my  sincerest  wishes 
for  your  health,  and  to  assure  your  Grace  that  I  have  the  honour 
to  be,  etc.,  etc., 

James  Wolfe.^ 

Although  one  of  Mrs.  Wolfe's  nephews,  a  son  of  Tindal 
Thompson,  had  not  reflected  much  credit  upon  the  family,  his  aunt 
was  nevertheless  anxious  to  have  him  enter  the  army  through  her 
husband's  or  her  son's  influence.     But  Wolfe  could  never  overlook 

^  Wolfe's  commission  as  Brigadier-General  is  dated  "  St.  James's,  23rd 
January,  1768/'  and  is  countersigned  "W.  Pitt." 
^  Bedford  Correspondence,  vol.  ii.  p.  319. 


JAMES   WOLFE 


Fi-om  the  portrait  painted  ly  Gainsboi-ough  for  Miss  Lowther,  and  noio  in  the  possession  oj 
Mrs.  Horace  Pym,  Brasted.  Kent 


CARLETON   REJECTED  353 

weakness  or  meanness  of  character  even  in  his  relations.  In  a  letter 
to  his  mother  he  uses  some  pretty  plain  speaking,  for  which  he  was 
certain  of  shai-p  rebuke. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

January  25th,  1758. 

Dear  Madam, — You  cannot  doubt  my  readiness  to  oblige 
you  in  anything  that  is  of  immediate  concern  to  yourself;  but 
you  must  not  put  me  upon  actions  that  I  should  blush  to  engage  in, 
and  that  my  uncle  should  blush  to  ask.  I  never  can  recommend 
any  but  a  gentleman  to  serve  with  gentlemen.  There  is  little 
prospect  of  a  low  dog's  doing  any  shining  act.  When  such  a 
thing  does  happen  a  regard  is  due  to  merit ;  so  unexpected 
courage  alone  is  no  sort  of  recommendation  to  put  a  private 
soldier  upon  the  footing  of  an  officer.  I  don't  apprehend  that  Mr. 
Thompson  addresses  himself  to  me,  or  that  he  has  any  just  right  to 
expect  that  I  should  interest  myself  in  behalf  of  an  idle  vagabond ; 
for  such  he  must  be,  by  the  expression  of  his  letter.  I  will  write 
a  civil  letter  to  my  uncle,  which  may  serve  as  an  apology  for  the 
General  and  myself. 

I  shall  pay  every  shilling  that  I  owe  upon  the  whole  earth, 
and  shall  leave  all  the  receipts  with  Miss  Brett,  directed  for  you ; 
so  that  the  only  running  open  account  is  Mr.  Fisher's,  and  that, 
I  believe,  if  my  Irish  remittances  come  in  time,  will  not  go  very 
deep.  Of  late,  no  thought  of  matrimony ;  I  have  no  objection 
to  it,  but  differ  much  from  the  general  opinion  about  it.  The 
greatest  consideration  with  me  is  the  woman,  her  education  and 
temper.  Rank  and  fortune  never  come  into  any  competitino 
with  the  person.  Any  bargain  on  that  affair  is  base  and  mean. 
I  could  not  with  any  satisfaction  consider  my  children  as  the 
produce  of  such  an  unnatural  union.  I  shall  set  out  for  Ports- 
mouth in  four  or  five  days.  The  King  has  refused  Carleton  leave 
to  go,  to  my  very  great  grief  and  disappointment,  and  with 
circumstances  extremely  unpleasant  to  him.  Lord  Fitzmaurice 
asked  to  serve  the  campaign  in  North  America.  His  Majesty 
did  not  absolutely  refuse  it,  but  spoke  handsomely,  and  put  it 
upon  the  footing  of  service  nearer  home. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe  had  been  very  keen  on  having  his  friend  Carleton 
accompany  him.  The  other  friend  he  mentions,  .Lord  Fitzmam-ice, 
then  a  lieutenant  of  twenty-one,  became,  three  years  later,  Earl  of 

A  A 


354    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Shelburne,   and   was   afterwards   Prime    Minister    and    the    first 
Marquess  of  Lansdowne. 

A  few  days  further  elapsed  and  the  new  Brigadier  had  got  his 
outfit  together  in  London  and  set  out  for  Portsmouth.  There  he 
found  a  letter  awaiting  him  from  his  mother,  upbraiding  him  in 
measured  terms  for  his  harsh  expressions  concerning  young 
Thompson. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Portsmouth,  1^^  February,  1758. 
Dear  Madam, — I  take  nothing  ill  from  you,  nor  from  any- 
body, that  is  not  meant  as  ill.  What  I  said  upon  my  uncle 
Tin"*s  letter  arises  from  the  frankness  of  my  temper.  When  I 
have  good  reasons  I  don't  conceal  them.  It  is  a  public  loss 
Carleton's  not  going.  Prejudices  against  particular  people  often 
hurt  the  common  cause.  Misrepresentations,  falsities,  injustice, 
are  too  frequent  to  create  any  degree  of  surprise.  Princes,  of  all 
people,  see  the  least  into  the  true  characters  of  men.  I  came 
here  this  morning,  two  or  three  days  sooner  than  was  necessary ; 
but  a  man  in  London,  upon  the  point  of  his  departure,  leads  a 
weary  life,  so  I  was  glad  to  get  out  of  town.  The  transports, 
with  Amherst**s  regiment  and  those  for  Ireland,  are  supposed  to 
have  got  out  of  the  channel,  and  'tis  well,  for  the  wind,  as  it 
blows  here,  would  otherwise  force  them  back  again. 

Our  hero  could  hardly  leave  England  without  anxiety  for  his 
parents.  His  father  was  now  approaching  his  seventy-fourth  year 
and  rapidly  failing,  and  his  mother's  health  was  much  affected. 
With  these  feelings  of  solicitude  again  he  writes  to  his  earliest  and 
still  his  warmest  friend,  George  Warde,  now  major  of  a  troop  of 
cavalry  stationed  at  Winton.^ 

To  Major  George  Warde. 

London,  1  Feb.,  1758. 

My  dear  Major, — As  the  time  of  my  sojourning  in  North 
America  is  uncertain,  accidents  may  happen  in  the  family  that 
may  throw  my  little  affairs  into  disorder,  unless  some  kind  friend 
will  take  the  trouble  to  inspect  into  them.  Carleton  is  so  good 
as  to  say  he  will  give  what  help  is  in  his  power.  May  I  ask  the 
same  favour  of  you,  my  oldest  friend,  in  whose  worth  and  integ- 

^  It  is  much  to  he  regretted  that  the  correspondence  between  General 
Warde  and  Wolfe  was  never  preserved,  save  in  a  few  cases,  as  it  must  have 
been  voluminous. 


EVE    OF   DEPARTURE  355 

rity  I  put  entire  confidence.  I  believe  there  should  have  been 
some  powers  drawn  out  and  some  formality  in  this  business  all 
which  I  am  a  stranger  to,  but  I  am  no  stranger  to  the  good  will 
and  honour  of  the  two  persons  to  whom  I  recommend  my  con- 
cerns. I  wish  you  much  health  and  prosperity  and  am,  my  dear 
Major, 

Your  faithful  and  affectionate  servant, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

At  this  time  Lord  George  Sackville  was  Master-General  of  the 
Ordnance.  The  friendly  relations  of  Wolfe  with  his  old  Colonel  in 
the  Twentieth  continued,  gathering  even  strength  with  years. 
Wolfe  was  not  to  live  to  hear  of  how  by  inexplicable  conduct  on 
the  field  of  Minden  he  inflicted  upon  his  reputation  a  terrible  dis- 
grace, which  in  his  friend''s  eyes  would  have  been  unpardonable,  but 
which  he  himself  lived  to  retrieve. 

Wolfe  and  Lord  George  corresponded  freely,  and  having  time 
on  his  hands  at  Portsmouth  the  Brigadier  indited  a  long  letter,  in 
which  breathes  absolute  confidence  in  the  success  of  the  project 
upon  which  he  is  about  to  embark.  From  the  first  passage  in  the 
letter  it  would  seem  that  Sackville  had  hinted  that  Wolfe  had  a 
chance  of  so  distinguishing  himself  as  to  earn  the  chief  command  in 
an  expedition  against  the  capital  of  New  France. 

Portsmouth^  *Jth  February,  1758. 
My  Lord, — If  I  had  any  constitution  to  spare,  I  should 
certainly  desire  to  succeed  Monsieur  de  Vandreuil  in  the  Govern- 
ment of  Canada ;  but  I  can't  trust  to  it.  Your  lordship  must 
let  me  put  you  in  mind  that  one  campaign  in  North  America  is 
as  much  as  I  can  afford,  though  I  hope  to  have  mettle  enough 
left  for  the  siege  of  St.  Philip's,  or  for  a  stroke  in  the  bottom  of 
the  Bay  of  Biscay  !  ^  Any  long  absence  at  this  time  would  reduce 
me  and  my  affairs  to  the  lowest  ebb.  I  can't  help  wishing  that 
Louisbourg  should  be  totally  demolished,  and  all  the  inhabitants 
of  those  islands  sent  to  Europe.  It  is  said  that  the  French  were 
thirty  years  in  putting  that  fortress  into  any  tolerable  condition 
of  defence  ;  we  shall  reduce  them  by  other  attacks  to  make  peace 
with  us,  and  to  restore  the  Island  of  Minorca.  I  should  think  it 
possible  to  shelter  the  island  at  the  entrance  of  the  harbour  in 
such  a  manner  with  mines,  as  to  make  it  very  difficult  to  raise 
any  batteries  there  for  the  time  to  come.     If  indeed  we  think 

^  A  reference  to  Minorca  and  Rochefort. 

A  A  2 


356     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Louisbourg  worth  Minorca,  and  resolve  to  keep  it, — that's  another 
affair ! 

It  is  of  consequence,  my  Lord,  not  to  confine  the  Admirals 
and  Generals  too  much  as  to  the  number  of  men  to  land  with ; 
five  or  six  thousand  men  are  sufficient  for  the  preparations  ;  it  is 
of  vast  importance  to  get  on  shore  before  the  fogs  come  on,  and 
still  more  not  to  lose  time.  Amherst  should  inform  himself  of 
the  rates  established  for  works  done  at  a  seige.  He  will  tell  your 
Lordship  his  opinion  of  Carleton,  by  which  you  will  probably  be 
better  convinced  of  our  loss.  I  shall  begin  to  write  to  your 
Lordship  the  day  we  sail,  and  continue  writing  until  the  end  of 
the  campaign.  Whatever  occurs  worth  your  notice  shall  be 
transmitted  to  you ;  and  when  you  have  a  leisure  half-hour  in  the 
country,  I  shall  beg  the  honour  of  a  letter  from  your  Lordship. 
If  you  seriously  intend  to  attack  the  French  in  Europe,  remem- 
ber that  boats  should  be  procured  to  land  at  least  4000  men  at 
a  time,  and  sloops  and  cutters  that  may  carry  as  many  more 
close  in  shore,  or  upon  occasion  run  aground  to  land  them. 
Some  small  flat  or  round-bottomed  vessels,  carrying  four  to  six 
heavy  cannon,  and  boats  fitted  up  with  swivel  guns  or  light 
field-pieces,  will  be  found  most  useful  in  landing  and  bringing 
off  the  troops,  and  in  all  attacks  upon  small  forts  situated  near 
the  water.  It  is  believed  that  the  transports  for  Anstruther's 
regiment  have  got  round  to  Cork. 

There  has  been  a  most  unaccountable  delay  in  regard  to  the 
East  India  ships  ;  they  are  like  to  be  six  months  longer  in  India, 
or  more,  from  those  delays.  Our  squadron  is  all  at  Spithead, 
except  the  "  Lancaster,"  and  that  ship  is  ready  to  go  out  of 
the  harbour.  The  naval  preparations  at  this  port  are  pretty 
expeditious ;  but  those  great  ships  take  more  time  to  fit  out  than 
is  commonly  believed.  The  East  India  people  here  assm'e  me 
that  the  loss  of  Chandernagore  is  a  mortal  blow  to  the  French 
commerce,  and  that  they  will  hardly  be  able  to  subsist  at  Pondi- 
cherry,  because  their  provisions  come  chiefly  from  the  Ganges. 
I  hope  Mons.  Lally  will  not  get  in  time  to  repair  the  damages 
done  by  our  fleet  before  our  own  reinforcements  arrive.  Here  is 
an  officer  of  Amherst's  with  some  sergeants  and  recruits,  to  the 
number  of  forty-three  persons ;  three  more  officers  are  expected 
to-night.  I  shall  apply  to  Mr.  Boscawen  for  their  passage.  I  am 
told  that  not  one  soldier  of  Amherst's  regiment  deserted  upon  this 
occasion ;  they  want  160  men  to  complete.  Mr.  Boscawen  gave 
directions  to  embark  them  in  the  most  commodious  manner. 


4 


"OUR   GREAT   MASTER"  357 

The  condition  of  the  troops  that  compose  this  garrison  (or 
rather  vagabonds  that  stroll  about  in  dirty  red  clothes  from  one 
gin-shop  to  another)  exceeds  all  belief.  There  is  not  the  least 
shaddow  of  discipline,  care,  or  attention.  Disorderly  soldiers  of 
different  regiments  are  collected  here;  some  from  the  ships, 
others  from  the  hospital,  some  waiting  to  embark — dirty, 
di-unken,  insolent  rascals,  improved  by  the  hellish  nature  of  the 
place,  where  every  kind  of  corruption,  immorality,  and  looseness 
is  carried  to  excess  ;  it  is  a  sink  of  the  lowest  and  most  abomin- 
able of  vices.  Your  Lordship  could  not  do  better  than  to  get 
the  company  of  Artilleiy  moved  out  of  this  infernal  den,  where 
troops  ought  never  to  be  quartered. 

Give  me  leave  to  observe  two  or  three  things  to  your  Lord- 
ship in  relation  to  our  last  new  exercise.  The  side-step  has 
been  introduced  by  mistake,  I  imagine,  instead  of  the  oblique 
step ;  one  is  as  absui'd  as  the  other  is  useful.  Wheeling  by 
divisions  to  the  right  or  left  may  be  called  a  principle  of  motion ; 
this  excellent  evolution  is  abolished,  and  the  ridiculous  wheel 
upon  the  centre  introduced  in  its  place.  The  ranks  are  opened 
to  a  very  inconvenient  distance  for  no  reason  that  I  can  conceive, 
unless  to  double  the  ranks  by  the  side-step  with  more  ease. 
Here  one  absurdity  has  produced  another.  Practising  the 
platoon  firing  with  the  ranks  open,  as  front  ranks,  as  centre 
ranks,  etc.,  is  all  nonsense ;  every  soldier  should  be  trained  to 
fire  in  each  rank,  and  obliquely.  A  company  or  battalion  should 
as  readily  fire  to  the  rear  as  to  the  front,  and  this  they  acquire 
in  learning  the  platoon  exercise, — that  is,  they  should  be  so 
taught.  When  soldiers  are  the  masters  of  the  use  of  their  fire- 
arms and  of  their  bayonets,  the  next  great  object  is  their 
marching  in  battalion,  as  your  Lordship  knows  full  well.  For 
this,  no  good  instructions  have  ever  been  given  in  my  time,  nor 
any  principles  laid  down  by  which  we  might  be  guided.  Hence 
the  variety  of  steps  in  our  infantry,  and  the  feebleness  and 
disorderly  floating  of  our  lines.  General  Drury,  I  think,  has  the 
merit  of  the  late  inventions;  'tis  unlucky,  however,  that  our  , 
great  master  in  the  art  of  war,  Frederick  of  Prussia,  was  not  1 
preferred  upon  this  occasion.  He  has  made  the  exercise  simple  | 
and  useful ;  we  cannot  choose  so  good  a  model. 

I  am  credibly  informed  that  at  a  council  of  war  held  at 
Calcutta,  after  the  recovery  of  that  settlement.  Captain  Speke  was 
single  for  the  attack  of  Chandernagore,  declaring  that  nothing 
was  done,  nor  could  there  be  any  security  till  that  settlement 


358    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

was  destroyed ;  and  by  persevering  in  his  opinion,  the  rest  were 
brought  at  length  to  agree  to  the  enterprise.  This  I  believe  is 
a  fact  that  may  be  depended  upon. 

Your  Lordship  has  taken  Beckwith,  Maxwell,  and  the  20th 
regiment — ^your  old  battalion — under  your  immediate  protection, 
and  they  cannot  be  better;  but  I  have  another  friend  to 
recommend  to  you  as  a  very  deserving  and  a  very  active  officer, 
— Captain  Rickson, — who  is  doing  duty  as  Deputy  Quarter- 
master-General of  Scotland.  He  wishes  to  be  confirmed  in  his 
office  by  commission,  as  usual,  and  as  it  ought  to  have  been  long 
ago,  if  (as  I  believe)  some  bye-views  and  artifices  had  not  pre- 
vented it.  That  employment  has  usually  the  rank  of  Lieutenant- 
Colonel  annexed  to  it,  which  Rickson  may  pretend  to  in  point  ot 
merit  with  almost  any  man  in  the  service.  Your  Lordship,  I 
think,  is  persuaded  that  I  never  did,  nor  ever  will,  undertake  to 
establish  any  man  in  your  good  opinion  but  from  a  thorough 
conviction  that  he  deserves  your  esteem. 

We  expect  Mr.  Boscawen  every  hour,  and  people  think  that 
he  will  not  wait  for  a  fair  wind,  but  endeavour  to  beat  down  the 
Channel  if  the  weather  is  moderate,  so  that  we  are  likely  to  be 
soon  under  way.  I  wish  your  Lordship  much  health,  and  have 
the  honour  to  be,  with  great  respect,  my  Lord, 

Your  Lordship's  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant, 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — ^Tuesday  afternoon. — Our  Admiral  is  arrived,  and  is  in 
haste  to  sail.  I  wish  the  voyage  was  over  and  that  we  struck 
soundings  upon  the  Banks.  Take  care  to  reinforce  the  fleet  if 
it  be  necessary;  don't  let  us  be  beat.  Barre,  who  knows 
Whitmore  better  than  anybody,  assures  me  that  he  has  no  health 
nor  constitution  for  such  business  as  we  are  going  upon ;  he 
never  was  a  soldier,  but  otherwise,  a  very  worthy  gentleman.  I 
pray  you  beware  how  you  employ  him  near  the  top ;  this  pre- 
vented, we  may  jog  on  tollerably.  Here  is  a  lieutenant  of  Foot 
going  with  Draper^  to  the  East  Indies,  who  would  be  a  most 
valuable  man  to  Amherst.  He  seems  to  understand  the  war  in 
America  well,  and  speaks  of  it  clearly  and  judiciously.  Alas ! 
there  are  but  few  such  men,  and  those  too  often  neglected.  He 
has  been  at  Montreal  and  Quebec,  and  has  navigated  down  the 
river  St.  Lawrence.     If  I  commanded  in  America,  I  would  give 

1  Lieutenant-Colonel  (afterwards  Sir)  William  Draper,  K.B.,  who  captured 
Manila  and  defied  "Junius." 


WRITES  AN  OLD  FRIEND         359 

him  a  company  and  =£^500  to  go  with  me, — a  modest,  sensible, 
manly  young  officer.  His  name  is  Cheshire.  I  hope  your 
Lordship  will  be  the  patron  and  protector  of  every  deserving 
man  of  our  profession. 

The  Barre  of  the  foregoing  was  destined  to  earn  great  dis- 
tinction as  a  political  character,  although  perhaps  not  altogether 
in  the  manner  Wolfe,  as  a  patriotic  Englishman,  would  approve. 
As  Colonel  Isaac  Barre,  M.P.,  he  came  to  be  the  opponent  of  the 
King  and  Lord  North  and  the  upholder  of  the  American  Revo- 
lution. Albeit,  Barre  never  forgot  that  his  first  real  patron  was  not 
Shelburne  or  Burke,  but  that  "  noble-hearted  soldier,  James  Wolfe." 

To  Major  George  Warde. 

Portsmouth,  February  Wth,  1758. 
Dear  Major, — Though  I  thank  you  for  the  assurances  con- 
tained in  your  letter,  yet  I  needed  not  that  proof  to  be  secure 
of  your  kind  offices  to  an  absent  friend.  I  don't  even  make  you 
an  apology  for  the  trouble  it  may  give  you,  because,  from  a 
consciousness  of  a  readiness  on  my  side  to  engage  warmly  in  your 
interest,  there  is  not  a  doubt  of  your  inclinations  to  forward 
mine.  If  my  father  should  die  in  my  absence,  I  desire  that  you 
and  Carleton  will  let  my  mother  know  that,  jointly  with  her, 
you  are  empowered  to  transact  my  business,  as  the  enclosed 
letter  of  attorney  sets  forth  ;  and  if  you  will  assist  her  with  your 
good  counsel,  I  shall  think  of  it  with  satisfaction,  and  acknow- 
ledge it  with  more  gratitude  than  anything  done  to  myself, 
though  of  every  mark  and  testimony  of  your  kindness  not  at  all 
insensible.  I  knew  you  were  in  to^vn,  and  that  you  had  called, 
but  not  remembering  where  you  lodged,  I  was  obliged  to  come 
away  without  seeing  you.  We  may  live  to  meet ;  and  to  find  you 
well  and  happy  will  be  one  very  sincere  pleasure  at  my  return. 
I  shall  collect  all  the  particulars  of  o\m  campaign  for  your  amuse- 
ment. I  wish  you  all  manner  of  good,  and  am,  my  dear  Major, 
Your  faithful  and  affectionate  servant. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
To  Major  Wards,  at  the  White  Hart,  Winton. 

On  the  same  day  he  wrote  to  Lord  George  Sackville  the  follow- 
ing further  interesting  letter.  The  Carden  he  mentions  was  eighteen 
years  later  sent  by  Carleton,  then  Governor  of  Canada,  to  dislodge 
the  American  rebel,  Ethan  Allen,  from  Long  Point,  near  Montreal. 
He  succeeded,  but  at  the  cost  of  his  life,  September  24,  1 775,^ 
^  Bradley  :  Lord  Dorchester ,  p  88. 


360    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

To  Lord  George  Sackville. 

Portsmouth,  February  Wth,  1768. 

My  Lord, — Garden  the  American  has  a  great  deal  of  merit, 
but  wants  bread  to  eat.  He  is  an  excellent  fellow  for  the 
woods ;  I  am  sure  of  my  intelligence  and  therefore  wish  the  field 
mareschal  wou'd  give  him  leave  to  serve  the  campaign  with  us, 
as  he  himself  desired — 5  or  6  shillings  a  day  for  the  campaign 
(till  other  provision  can  be  made)  wou'd  satisfy  him  fully.  If 
this  is  thought  too  high  a  price  for  his  services  I  am  ready  to 
find  him  in  food  and  shelter  at  my  own  expense.  Hotham 
has  a  letter  from  Murray  recommending  him  in  the  strongest 
manner  upon  former  acquaintance  in  war.  My  information 
regards  some  later  acts  of  his  upon  which  I  venture  to  present 
him  to  your  lordship  and  to  the  public  as  a  good  servant  and  a 
brave  soldier,  and  beg  he  may  be  sent  to  us  or  after  us.  He 
is  bold,  circumspect,  and  more  artful  than  his  appearance 
bespeaks — has  experience  in  the  method  of  the  American  war 
beyond  anybody  that  I  can  hear  off;  I  hope  we  shan't  lose  such 
a  subject  so  particularly  adapted  to  this  kind  of  work.  I  am  at 
more  trouble  to  find  out  proper  people  to  forward  the  service 
than  almost  anybody,  and  succeed  so  ill  when  I  have  found  'em 
that  I  am  discouraged  from  proceeding  in  my  discoveries.  Garden 
was  Lieut,  of  Shirley's  or  Pepperells,  I  know  not  which,  and 
has  but  one  threadbare  uniform  to  cover  an  indefatigable  body 
spurred  on  to  action  by  a  daring  mind. 

Death,  wounds,  sickness,  and  a  necessaiy  garrison,  will 
diminish  our  numbers.  I  give  3,000  men  for  these  different 
articles.  Would  it  not  be  a  wise  measure  to  send  a  reinforce- 
ment of  a  good  old  battalion  of  900  men  to  join  us  about  the 
middle  of  June  ?  With  such  an  increase  of  strength,  we  might 
undertake  the  great  object,  at  least  I  see  no  reason  at  this 
distance  to  hinder  it.  Of  the  800  men  drawn  from  the  second 
battalion  under  major  Hardy's  command  I  can  venture  to  say 
that  we  shan't  land  400,  but  the  mischief  they  will  do  in  the 
fleet  by  introducing  diseases  amongst  them  is  still  more  to  be 
apprehended.  No  nation  in  the  world  but  this  sends  soldiers  to 
war  without  discipline  or  instructions. 

I  am,  my  Lord,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

PS. — The  wind  labours  hard  against  us.  Adam  Livingstone 
of  the  Scottish  Fusiliers,  and  Delaune  of  Kingsley's,  are  formed 
by  nature  for  the  American  war. 


EMBARKS   FOR  CAPE   BRETON    361 

He  also  penned  an  epistle  to  Bath — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Portsmouth,  February  llthy  1758. 

Dear  Madam, — When  any  matter  of  importance  to  a  country 
is  resolved  on,  the  sooner  it  is  carried  into  execution  the  better. 
Delays  are  not  only  productive  of  bad  consequences,  but  are 
very  tiresome  and  very  inconvenient,  as  every  unhappy  person, 
whose  lot  it  is  to  be  confined  for  any  length  of  time  to  this 
place,  can  certify.  The  want  of  company  and  of  amusement  can 
be  supplied  with  book  and  exercise,  but  the  necessity  of  living 
in  the  midst  of  the  diabolical  citizens  of  Portsmouth  is  a  real 
and  unavoidable  calamity.  It  is  a  doubt  to  me  if  there  is  such 
another  collection  of  demons  upon  the  whole  earth.  Vice,  how- 
ever, wears  so  ugly  a  garb,  that  it  disgusts  rather  than  tempts. 
The  weather  begins  to  be  more  moderate  than  it  has  been  for 
some  days  past,  and  I  fancy  we  shall  go  on  board  this  afternoon, 
to  be  ready  to  get  imder  sail  with  the  first  favourable  turn  of 
the  wind.  I  should  be  glad  if  we  were  at  sea,  though  I  have  no 
very  agreeable  prospect  before  me ;  however,  I  hope  to  overcome 
it,  and  if  not,  have  a  mind  strong  enough  to  endure  that,  and 
still  severer  trials,  if  there  are  any  more  severe.  I  heartily  wish 
you  all  the  benefit  that  you  youi'self  can  hope  for  from  the 
Bath.  The  General  will  be  kind  enough  to  put  up  with  some 
inconvenience  for  your  sake.  I  beg  my  duty  to  him,  and  am, 
dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

PS. — You  shall  hear  from  me  by  all  the  opportunities  that 
offer. 

On  the  day  following  Wolfe  embarked.     As  usual  there  was  a 
hanging  about  the  Channel  for  a  week. 

To  HIS  Father. 

"Princess  Amelia,"  St.  Helens,  \%th  Feb.,  1758. 

Dear  Sir, — Our  Captain  sends  me  word  that  a  boat  is  just 
going  ashore,  and  that  I  have  time  to  write  three  or  four  lines. 
Mr.  Boscawen,  impatient  to  get  out  to  sea,  left  Spithead  the 
15th,  and  brought  his  squadron  here  to  be  ready  for  the  first 
favourable  change  of  wind,  which  has  blown  for  some  days 
directly  against  us,  and  with  great  violence.  The  weather  is 
now  mild,  and  the  moon  old  enough  to  light  us  in  the  night, 
but  our  mariners  see  no  immediate  prospect  of  sailing.     We  are 


362    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

extremely  well  in  this  ship,  have  great  room,  and  much  kindness 
and  civility  from  the  commanders,  and  hitherto  the  motion  has 
not  had  any  very  great  effect  upon  me. 

I  am,  dear  Sir, 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Father. 

Plymouth  Sound,  22nd  February. 

Dear  Sir, — Some  very  bad  weather,  and  the  appearance  of 
still  worse,  forced  Mr.  Boscawen  to  anchor  in  this  place, — a 
berth  that  the  mariners  are  not  very  fond  of.  The  wind  blew 
violently  yesterday  in  the  afternoon  and  good  part  of  the  night, 
so  as  to  try  our  anchors  and  cables  a  little ;  but  "'tis  now  calm, 
and  promises  to  be  fair.  You  may  believe  that  I  have  passed 
my  time  disagreeably  enough  in  this  rough  weather;  at  best, 
the  life,  you  know,  is  not  pleasant.  We  left  the  "  Invincible  *''' 
upon  a  sand,  and  believe  she  is  lost :  the  finest  ship  of  that  rate 
(74  guns)  in  the  Navy,  well  manned  and  well  commanded,^  By 
what  fatal  accident  this  happened  we  cannot  guess.  The  boat 
waits  for  my  letter,  so  I  will  only  add  my  best  wishes  for  yom- 
health  and  my  mother*'s. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Boscawen's  delay,  however,  was  nothing  to  Amherst's,  who  was 
not  ready  to  embark  until  the  middle  of  March,  when  he  set  out 
from  Spithead  in  Captain  Rodney's  Dublin.  We  shall  see  that  he 
did  not  arrive  at  Halifax  until  Boscawen,  having  been  there  ten 
days,  was  actually  leaving  that  port. 

^  This  fine  ship  was  wrecked  at  St.  Helens  on  the  18th.  No  lives  were 
lost. 


XVI 
THE   CONQUEST  OF  LOUISBOURG 

On  May  9,  1758,  Boscawen's  flagship  entered  Halifax  harbour 
with  two  and  a  half  battalions  of  the  Philadelphia  contingent, 
which  he  picked  up  at  sea.  He  found  that  Lawrence  had  three 
other  English  battalions,  but  Whitmore  and  the  Irish  regiment 
were  not  yet  arrived.  Boscawen  instantly  wrote  to  Chatham  that 
though  he  was  disappointed  as  to  numbers,  he  had  enough  to 
establish  a  preliminary  footing  on  Cape  Breton,  in  accordance  with 
the  minister's  instructions. 

After  a  couple  of  days  ashore,  at  what  is  to-day  the  capital  of 
the  Canadian  province  of  Nova  Scotia,  Wolfe,  in  conformity  with 
his  promise  to  keep  his  friend  Sackville  completely  au  courant  with 
affairs  as  he  found  them,  wrote  ^ — 

To  Lord  George  Sackville. 

Halifax,  May  I2th,  1768. 

My  Lord, — From  Christopher  Columbus'*  time  to  our  days 
there  perhaps  has  never  been  a  more  extraordinary  voyage.  The 
continual  opposition  of  contrary  winds,  calms,  or  currents,  baffled 
all  our  skill  and  w^ore  out  all  our  patience.  A  fleet  of  men  of  war 
well  manned,  unincumbered  with  transports,  commanded  by  an 
officer  of  the  first  reputation,  has  been  eleven  weeks  in  its  passage. 
We  made  the  Madeira  Islands,  the  Canaries,  Bermudas,  and 
lastly  to  crown  all  the  Isle  of  Sable.  Two  or  three  of  the  ships 
are  sickly,  the  rest  are  in  very  good  condition.  The  Admiral, 
who  has  omitted  no  care  of  precaution  to  advance  the  service,  is 
labouring  to  fit  the  fleet  for  the  sea  with  all  possible  despatch. 

We  found  Amherst's  Regiment  in  the  harbour  in  fine  order 
and  healthy.  Eraser's  and  Brigadier  Lawrence's  Battalions  were 
here,  and  both  in  good  condition.  The  Highlanders  are  very 
useful  serviceable  soldiers,  and  commanded  by  the  most  manly 
corps  of  officers  I  ever  saw.  Webb's,  Otway's,  and  part  of 
Monckton's  battalions  from  Philadelphia  came  in  with  us.  The 
detachments  from  this  garrison  are  not  joined,  so  that  these 

1  Wright  says  "  he  was  not  able  to  resume  his  pen  for  some  days,"  indeed, 
until  the  19th.     The  existence  of  this  letter  was  then  unknown. 

363 


364    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

battalions  are  very  weak,  scarce  exceeding  300  men  a  regiment. 
About  500  Rangers  are  come,  which  to  appearance  are  little 
better  than  canaille. 

Brigadier  Whitmore  is  expected  every  day  with  the  artillery 
and  troops  from  New  York  and  Boston,  Bragg's  from  the  bay  of 
Fundy,  and  Anstruther's  from  Ireland. 

A  great  quantity  of  facines  and  gabions  are  made  and  other 
preparations  of  that  sort,  and  a  kind  of  small  wooden  fort  (that 
takes  to  pieces),  to  secure  our  communications,  instead  of  redoubts, 
which  it  seems  the  ground  does  not  admit  of.  I  have  recom- 
mended a  provision  of  palisades  that  the  troops  may  lie  quiet  in 
their  camps  and  to  fortify  our  different  magazines.  We  are  to 
expect  opposition  at  our  landing.  It  is  supposed  they  have 
about  1,500  irregulars,  and  that  their  garrison  is  augmented 
because  seven  ships  (three  of  which  are  said  to  be  men  of  war  of 
two  decks)  have  got  into  the  harbour.  The  battalions  are  in 
general  healthy,  and  I  dare  say  will  do  their  duty  well.  They 
are  irritated  against  the  enemy  and  have  a  quarrel  of  their  own 
to  decide  besides  the  public  cause.  As  I  foresaw  long  ago  we 
shall  find  work  to  do.  We  are  preparing  a  body  of  Light  Foot 
to  join  to  the  Rangers,  and  I  believe  the  whole  will  be  put  under 
the  command  of  Captain  Scott  (Major  of  Brigade),  who  is  an 
active  officer  and  used  to  that  kind  of  war.  Captain  Raess  came 
in  yesterday  from  Sir  C.  Hardy's  squadron  off  Louisbourg.  They 
have  had  the  severest  weather  imaginable,  and  the  snow  is  still 
upon  the  ground  of  Cape  Breton,  though  here  the  weather  is 
fair  and  dry  and  warm.  We  don''t  entertain  a  right  notion  of 
L'Isle  Royale  in  England ;  it  is  not  possible  to  encamp  there 
early  in  the  year  and  to  preserve  the  army.  I  wouldn't  be  under- 
stood by  that  to  mean  that  we  are  prevented  by  the  season  at 
this  time.  We  only  await  the  arrival  of  Brigadier  Whitmore 
and  the  equipment  of  the  squadron  to  set  sail,  and  certainly  we 
shall  struggle  against  all  difficulties  and  push  the  affair  with 
vigour.  As  I  told  your  lordship  we  will  put  your  cannon  in 
proof. 

PS. — General  Hopson   delivers  over  the  command  of  the 
troops  this  day  to  Brigadier  Lawrence. 

On  May  19  there  is  a  letter  addressed  to  his  Uncle  Walter, 
but  the  substance  of  it  is  identical  with  the  one  written  on  the 
following  day  to  his  father. 


OPINION   OF   HALIFAX  365 

To  HIS  Father. 

Halifax,  2.0th  May,  1758. 

Dear  Sir, — General  Hopson  does  me  the  favour  to  cany 
this  letter.  The  King  has  thought  proper  to  recall  him,  on 
account,  I  suppose,  of  his  age,  with  which,  and  the  assurance 
given  him  of  a  good  reception  at  home,  he  is  well  pleased.^  Our 
fleet  and  army  have  gathered  together  from  many  different 
places  without  any  material  accident.  Sir  Charles  Hardy  has 
been  cruising  off  Louisbourg  ever  since  the  2nd  or  3rd  of  April, 
or  thereabouts  ;  but,  notwithstanding  Sir  Charles's  vigilance  and 
activity,  the  French  have  contrived  to  get  in  three  or  four  men 
of  war,  and  as  many  small  ships.  Others  intended  for  the  port, 
laden  with  stores  and  provisions,  have  been  taken  by  our 
squadron.  We  shall  be  ready  to  sail  in  four  or  five  days.  Mr. 
Boscawen  has  been  indefatigable  on  his  side,  and  we  have  not 
been  idle.  Our  army  consists  of  fourteen  regiments,  and  our 
fleet  of  about  twenty  sail  of  the  line,  and  I  believe,  as  many 
frigates.  Our  General  is  not  yet  arrived,  but  we  shall  proceed 
without  him.  When  the  army  is  landed,  the  business  is  half 
done ;  and  I  hope  it  will  be  all  done  before  you  receive  this 
letter.  The  troops  are  very  healthy,  and  so  are  most  of  the 
ships ;  four  or  five  are  otherwise,  and  so  will  the  French  fleet  be 
if  they  come  upon  this  coast. 

You  will  hear  it  said  in  England  that  Mr.  Abercrombie  has 
an  army  of  7000  regulars  and  20,000  provincials.  Of  this  last 
account  you  may  deduct  one-half,  and  depend  upon  it  that  the 
remaining  10,000  are  not  good  for  much.  Lord  Howe  is  in  high 
esteem  with  the  troops  in  Albany.  You  may  expect  to  hear  of 
some  handsome  performances  of  his.  The  nature  of  the  wai* 
there  requires  all  his  abilities,  spirit,  and  address.  The  harbour 
of  Halifax  is  a  most  excellent  port,  and  of  infinite  consequence 
to  us,  both  from  its  situation  and  goodness.  If  you  saw  in  what 
manner  it  is  fortified,  you  would  hardly  think  that  we  judge  it 
worth  our  care.  There  are  guns  indeed  in  different  spots,  but 
so  exposed  from  behind,  that  the  batteries  would  soon  be 
abandoned.  I  wish  you  and  my  mother  a  great  deal  of  health, 
and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  most  affectionate  Son, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

In  the  letter  to  Major  Walter  Wolfe  there  occurs,  however,  a  most 
1  Hopson  died  the  follo\ving  year. 


366    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

characteristic  passage.  After  saying  that  the  French  have  managed 
to  get  a  small  number  of  ships  into  Louisbourg,  he  added :  "  If 
they  had  thrown  in  twice  as  much  we  should  not  hesitate  to  attack 
them ;  and  for  my  part,  I  have  no  doubt  of  our  success.  If  the 
French  fleet  comes  upon  this  coast,  the  campaign  will  I  hope  be 
decisive."" 

Time  still  dragged,  and  the  indefatigable  letter-writer  again 
puts  pen  to  paper. 

To  Lord  George  Sackville. 

Halifax,  May  lUh,  1758. 

My  Lord, — The  latter  end  of  May  and  the  fleet  not  sailed ! 
What  are  they  about  ?  Why  are  they  not  landed  at  Louisbourg  ? 
The  troops  have  been  all  embarked  these  three  or  four  days  (except 
Bragg's  and  two  hundred  men  from  Lunenburg,  who  we  sup- 
pose to  be  at  hand),  but  the  war  ships  are  not  quite  ready,  and, 
if  they  were,  the  wind,  rain,  and  fog  of  this  last  week  would 
have  kept  us  here.  The  Admiral  means  to  sail  with  the  first  air 
breeze  and  leave  some  of  the  ships  of  war  to  follow.  He  has 
reinforced  Sir  Charles  Hardy  with  the  Royal  William  and  Prince 
Frederick  and  is  impatient  to  be  gone.  The  enemy  we  are  told 
has  entrenched  the  shoar  of  the  bay  of  Gabarus  and  has  planted 
his  artillery  upon  the  beach  thereof.  If  we  find  him  strong  in 
that  part,  we  must  try  him  at  a  greater  distance,  and  where 
perhaps  he  is  less  prepared.  Our  present  notions  are  to  land 
3000  men  at  Mire  and  march  towards  Gabarus,  attack  at  the 
same  time  the  further  L'Orembeck  and  La  Balleine,  get  footing 
in  one  or  other  of  those  little  harbours,  land  a  considerable  body 
and  march  to  the  nether  L'Orembeck  which  is  not  above  a  mile 
from  the  end  of  the  North  East  Harbour.  A  small  body  of  men 
(by  way  of  diversion)  are  likewise  to  be  detached  to  the  bottom 
of  Gabarus  Bay,  there  land  and  entrench  themselves.  While 
these  operations  are  carrying  on  the  Admiral  threatens  them  at 
the  harbour's  mouth  and  the  gros  of  his  squadron  and  makes  all 
possible  show  of  attack  with  the  rest  of  that  part  of  the  Bay 
of  Gabarus  where  the  Americans  landed.  If  neither  of  these 
succeed  we  must  fall  upon  some  other  method  for  we  must  get 
on  shoar  or  perish  altogether  in  the  attempt.  It  will  be  my  part 
to  command  the  body  that  goes  round  to  Mire  (3  battalions  of 
the  Light  Foot).  Monckton  has  L'Orembeck  with  two  battalions, 
and   Lawrence    manages   the    rest.     Nothing,   however,  is  yet 


REPORTS   TO   SACKVILLE  367 

fixed  upon  or  can  be  fixed  till  we  see  the  object,  and  perhaps 
General  Amherst  may  arrive  in  the  meanwhile  time  enough  to 
improve  the  present  plan.  When  the  troops,  &c.  are  landed  we 
shall  possess  the  Light  House  Point,  cannonade  and  bombard  the 
Island  Battery  and  destroy  the  shipping ;  then  we  proceed  to 
open  the  trenches,  and  I  should  imagine  the  attack  will  be 
directed  against  the  Bastion  Dauphin  for  reasons  that  the 
Engineers  will  give  your  lordship  hereafter.  General  Aber- 
crombie  has  withheld  the  haut-vitzers  that  were  at  New  York 
amongst  the  stores  intended  for  the  siege  of  Louisbourg  last 
year,  and  comprehended  in  the  preparations  of  this  year  by 
which  we  shall  be  great  sufferers.  I  hope  Mr.  Abercrombie  has 
sufficient  reasons  to  give  for  depriving  us  of  so  essential  an 
article.  We  ought  to  have  had  a  dozen  of  the  largest  sort 
for  this  business.  I  am  told,  too,  that  his  Excellency  had  a 
great  mind  to  keep  the  tools,  in  which  case  there  was  an  end  of 
the  siege  of  Louisbourg  altogether,  and  I  believe  it  will  now  be 
found  that  we  have  not  one  pick  axe  too  many. 

As  here  are  no  spare  arms,  nor  no  rifled  barrel  guns,  the 
firelocks  of  these  regiments  will  be  so  injured  in  the  course 
of  the  siege  that  I  doubt  if  they  will  be  in  any  condition  of 
service  after  it  is  over.     Some  of  them  are  already  very  bad. 

Upon  enquiry  into  the  affairs  of  this  country  it  appears 
evidently  that  the  two  principal  posts  and  frontiers  indeed  of 
America  are  Halifax  and  Oswego,  one  of  which  we  have  already 
lost,  and  the  other  we  must  lose  in  12  hours  whenever  it  is 
attacked.  This  is  a  most  excellent  harboui',  is  situated  happily  for 
the  protection  of  our  fishery  and  the  interruption  of  the  enemy's 
and  for  the  annoyance  of  their  navigation  up  the  river  St.  Lawrence. 

The  position  of  Oswego  manifests  its  great  utility.  You 
secure  an  interest  with  the  Indians  and  awe  them ;  share  the 
furr  trade  with  the  French ;  make  war  upon  their  colony  from 
thence  with  great  ease,  cut  off  the  communication  with  the  Ohio 
by  a  squadron  of  armed  vessels  upon  the  lake,  and,  by  obliging 
them  to  defend  themselves  at  home,  prevent  the  bloody  ravages 
made  upon  the  frontiers  of  our  colonies.  Hitherto  there  has 
been  the  most  profound  ignorance  of  the  nature  of  the  war  upon 
this  continent  and  several  abuses  in  regard  to  the  troops.  Lord 
Howe  will  remedy  the  first  if  he  outlives  this  campaign,  and  it 
belongs  to  your  lordship  to  do  the  rest.  The  army  is  undone 
and  ruined  by  the  constant  use  of  salt  meat  and  rum.  They 
might  often  be  provided  with  fresh  meat  as  cheap  as  the  other. 


368     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

and  by  stopping  2d  or  3d  a  day  for  their  provisions  they  would 
have  no  more  left  than  was  of  use  to  them,  and  the  extravagance 
hitherto  unknown  of  furnishing  an  army  with  provisions  without 
making  them  contribute  a  part  of  their  pay  towards  it,  would 
be  at  an  end.  The  women,  too,  can  very  well  afford  by  their 
industry  to  pay  2d  a  day  for  their  provisions  ;  the  idle  ones  that 
cannot  are  better  away.  The  men's  necessaries  indeed  are  at  a 
higher  price  in  America  than  in  Europe,  but  still  in  time  of  war 
they  can  afford  2d  a  day  for  provisions,  and  in  time  of  peace  3d. ; 
the  same  at  sea  and  at  Gibraltar,  which  would  be  a  considerable 
saving  and  a  very  considerable  one  to  the  public. 

Work  done  by  the  soldiers  for  his  Majesty's  service  is  paid  at 
a  most  exorbitant  rate.  We  are  indebted  to  Mr.  Knowles  for 
this  piece  of  economy.  Besides  their  provisions  and  their  pay, 
the  soldiers  had  a  shilling  a  day  for  working  at  the  fortifications 
of  Louisbourg  while  he  was  governor  of  the  town,  and  which  has 
been  continued  in  this  province  ever  since. 

Some  of  the  regiments  of  this  army  have  3  or  400  men 
eaten  up  with  scurvy.  All  of  them  that  are  wounded  or  hurt 
by  any  accident  run  great  risk  of  their  lives  from  the  corrupted 
state  of  the  blood,  so  your  lordship  may  rest  assured  that  the 
enterprise  of  Louisbourg  will  cost  a  multitude  of  men,  as 
contemptuously  as  the  Marshal^  treated  that  subject.  There  is 
not  an  ounce  of  fresh  beef  or  mutton  contracted  for  even  for  the 
sick  and  wounded,  which  besides  the  inhumanity  is  both  impolitic 
and  absurd.  Mr.  Boscawen,  indeed,  has  taken  the  best  precau- 
tions in  his  power  by  ordering  600  head  of  live  cattle  for  the 
fleet  and  army  the  moment  he  arrived.  The  curious  part  of  this 
barbarity  is  that  the  scoundrels  of  contractors  can  afford  the 
fresh  meat  in  many  places  and  circumstances  as  cheap  as  the  salt. 
I  think  our  stock  for  the  siege  full  little,  and  none  of  the  medi- 
cines for  the  hospitals  are  arrived.  No  horses  or  oxen  for  the 
artillery,  &c. 

Too  much  money  and  too  much  rum  necessarily  affect  the 
discipline  of  an  army.  We  have  glaring  evidence  of  their  ill 
consequences  every  moment.  Sergeants  drunk  upon  duty,  two 
sentries  upon  their  posts  and  the  rest  wallowing  in  the  dirt.  I 
believe  no  nation  ever  paid  so  many  bad  soldiers  at  so  high  a 
rate.  My  Lord  Loudoun,  whose  management  in  the  conduct  of 
affairs  is  by  no  means  admired,  did  adhere  so  literally  and  strictly 

'  Lord  Ligonier. 


AMERICAN   CONDITIONS  369 

to  the  one — two  and  the  firings  by  the  impracticable  chequer,  &c., 
that  these  regiments  must  necessarily  be  cut  off  one  after  another 
unless  they  fall  into  some  method  more  suited  to  the  counti-y 
and  to  the  kind  of  enemy  they  have  to  deal  with. 

I  expect  to  be  attacked  upon  the  march  by  the  Mickmacs, 
Abenaquis  and  Canadians.  I  have  made  the  best  preparations 
in  my  power  (and  that  the  time  permits),  to  beat  'em  off;  but  I 
can't  be  sure  that  we  shan't  presently  run  into  confusion  and  be 
very  ill-treated,  altho'  I  have  with  me  some  of  the  best  of  our 
battalions. 

Our  clothes,  oui'  arms,  our  accoutrements,  nay  even  our  shoes 
and  stockings  are  all  improper  for  this  country.  Lord  Howe  is 
so  well  convinced  of  it  that  he  has  taken  away  all  the  men's 
breeches. 

There  are  in  America  three  or  four  excellent  men  in  their 
way.  Bradstreet  for  the  battues  and  for  expeditions  is  an 
extraordinary  man ;  Rogers  is  an  excellent  partisan  for  2  or  300 
men,  and  young  Clarke  under  my  Lord  Howe,  whom  nature  has 
formed  for  the  war  of  this  country,  and  will  make  a  good  figure 
as  an  engineer  for  the  field^^ 

One  of  the  engineers,  GR-een,  is  sick  upon  the  continent  and 
instead  of  Matt.  Clarke  and  Gordon,  who  I  suppose  were  far  off, 
we  have  got  two  boys,  Montresor  and  Williamson,  and  to  make 
up  the  300  artillery  we  must  cany  off  all  that  are  here.  Among 
the  officers  of  the  infantry  we  have  picked  six  or  seven  assistant 
engineers,  enough  to  make  out  three  brigades,  six  in  each,  besides 
the  active  Bastide  and  Major  Mackellar.  Delaune  and  Carden 
would  be  more  useful  here  than  can  be  conceived.  We  want  just 
two  such  men  to  throw  into  the  light  infantry,  and  we  want  grave 
Carleton  for  every  purpose  of  the  war.  Anstruther's  regiment 
is  sickly,  and  two  or  three  of  the  ships  are  in  so  terrible  a 
condition  that  they  are  hardly  fit  for  sea. 

I  am  told  that  a  certain  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  this  army 
drew  up  a  kind  of  representation  and  gave  it  to  Colonel  Monro 
(signed  by  others  I  suppose  as  well  as  himself)  setting  forth  the 
condition  of  Fort  William  Henry;  how  incapable  it  was  of 
further  resistance,  and  giving  it  as  their  opinion  that  Colonel 
Munro  had  made  a  very  good  defence  and  might  with  honoxn- 
capitulate,  &c.,  &c.  But  Cunninghame  can  tell  you  more  of  the 
matter. 

I  am,  my  Lord,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

B  B 


370    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

While  the  great  fleet  rested  in  Halifax  harbour  waiting  for 
General  Amhersfs  arrival,  Boscawen  held  supreme  command  of  the 
combined  force,  which  was  soon  reinforced  by  Whitmore's  arrival 
and  the  Irish  regiment.  Lawrence,  Wolfe  and  Boscawen  met  in 
council  and  decided  to  proceed  to  Cape  Breton  without  waiting 
longer  for  the  tardy  Amherst.  They  got  to  sea  on  May  28,  and 
met  Rodney"'s  ship,  with  Amherst  on  board,  coming  in,  much  to  the 
general  satisfaction. 

The  force  of  which  General  Amherst  now  assumed  command 
numbered  fourteen  battalions  of  infantry,  500  Rangers,  and  a  de- 
tachment of  Royal  artillery,  altogether  an  army  of  nearly  12,000 
men.  There  was  probably  a  similar  number  of  marines  and 
seamen  in  the  fleet  of  more  than  150  ships.  Such  was  the  pre- 
ponderating strength  of  armament  descending  to  crush  Louisbourg, 
blotting  the  fortress  from  the  face  of  the  earth,  f* 

Louisbourg,  situated  on  a  rugged  promontory  south-west  of  the 
harbour,  was  some  two  miles  in  circumference.  The  houses  were 
built  of  stone,  the  streets  broad  and  regular,  with  a  spacious  parade 
adjoining  the  citadel.  Facing  the  parade  was  the  church  and 
Governor's  house ;  opposite  were  the  barracks,  where,  being  sup- 
posed bomb-proof,  the  women  and  children  took  refuge,  until  the 
shells  began  to  make  havoc  of  the  building.  At  one  end  of  the 
harbour  was  an  excellent  wharf,  and  on  the  opposite  side  were  fish- 
drying  stages  sufficient  to  accommodate  the  product  of  2000  fishing- 
boats.  In  the  minds  of  most  of  the  officers  and  men  little  doubt 
was  expressed  as  to  the  ability  of  the  combined  force  to  succeed  in 
their  object,  in  spite  of  the  reinforcements  which,  eluding  Hardy's 
squadron,  had  got  into  Louisbourg  harbour.  The  question  was, 
would  Louisbourg  be  taken  in  time  to  push  on  to  Quebec  ?  That 
would  remain  to  be  seen. 

The  fleet  came  in  view  of  the  town  on  June  2nd.  Notwith- 
standing his  sea-sickness,  for  there  was  a  high  sea  running,  Wolfe 
accompanied  Amherst  and  Lawrence  in  a  boat,  to  reconnoitre  the 
coast. 

In  council,  before  Amherst  had  arrived,  Wolfe  had  already  pro- 
duced his  plan  for  the  impending  operations.  He  was  to  land 
with  three  battalions  of  light  infantry  in  Mire  Bay,  ten  miles 
northward  from  Louisbourg,  and  march  towards  Gabarus  Bay  to 
capture  the  French  landing-place  there.  In  this  exploit  he  was  to 
be  seconded  by  Monckton,  who,  landing  on  the  opposite  side  of  the 
peninsula,  would  march  overland  to  his  support.  Meanwhile,  two 
separate  diversions  were  to  be  made  by  Boscawen  and  Lawrence,  so 


PLAN   OF   THE   SIEGE 


371 


that  the  enemy  ^^ould  be  utterly  confused  as  to  the  precise  point 
of  the  chief  attack,  and  thereby  divide  fatally  their  defence. 


Amherst  now  produced  a  plan  to  supersede  Wolfe''s.     His  idea 
was  the  straightforward,  familiar  frontal  attack,  with  two  side  diver- 


B  B  2 


372     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

sions.  By  June  8,  and  not  sooner,  owing  to  tempestuous  weather, 
was  the  chief  business  of  the  expedition  begun.  And  whosesoever 
plan  was  adopted  it  appeared  that  the  chief  fighting  business  was 
to  be  entrusted  to  Brigadier  Wolfe. 

To  him  were  allotted  twelve  companies  of  Grenadiers,  Eraser's 
Highlanders,  Major  Scott's  Light  Infantry  Corps  of  marksmen,  and 
a  company  of  provincial  Rangers,  mostly  men  from  Massachusetts, 
of  whom  we  have  already  had  Wolfe's  opinion.  -At  midnight  on 
June  7  the  embarkation  into  the  boats  was  begun.  At  dawn,  after 
a  preliminary  bombardment  by  the  fleet  as  a  diversion,  the  seamen 
conveying  the  three  divisions  began  to  ply  their  oars  with  spirit 
for  the  shore.  Whitmore's  division  on  the  right  rowed  eastward, 
as  though  to  land  at  White  Point :  in  the  centre  Lawrence's  six 
battalions  headed  straight  for  Freshwater  Cove,  to  make  the  enemy 
suppose  a  landing  was  to  be  attempted  there,  while  Wolfe's  brigade 
on  the  left  made  vigorously  for  the  spot  of  the  real  descent — 
Kennington  Cove  or  La  Coromandiere.-^ 

Men  who  served  under  Wolfe  that  day  have  recorded  the  extra- 
ordinary confidence  which  was  felt  by  men  of  all  ranks  in  their 
young  leader.  All  the  troops  were  full  of  enthusiasm  and  eager 
for  the  fray.  Not  without  danger  and  discomfort  was  the  passage 
made.  As  they  approached  not  only  the  batteries  belched  forth 
their  shot  and  shell  against  them,  but  the  very  waves  conspired  to 
repel.  The  angiy  surf  beat  upon  the  boats,  upsetting  some  and 
shattering  to  pieces  others,  many  men  being  drowned  before  they 
could  secure  a  dry  footing.  Wolfe's  flagstaff  was  actually  shot 
away,  and  it  seemed  utter  madness  to  face  such  fire.  But  a  boatful 
of  Light  Infantry,  commanded  by  two  young  lieutenants,  Brown 
and  Hopkins,  sighting  a  half-protected  landing-place  on  the  rocks, 
managed  to  run  their  boat  straight  on  shore  in  advance  of  the 
rest.  Wolfe,  standing  erect  in  the  bows,  cried  out  encouragement 
to  the  others  to  follow  their  example.  In  another  moment  he  had 
leapt  into  the  surf,  now  only  knee-deep,  and  scrambled,  unarmed, 
with  only  a  cane  in  his  hand,  over  the  intervening  rocks.^  He 
reached  the  men  already  landed,  and  asked  who  were  the  first 
ashore.  Two  Highland  soldiers  were  pointed  out  to  him.  "  Good 
fellows  1 "  he  cried,  and  going  up  to  the  men  presented  them  with 
a  guinea  apiece.  Then,  to  the  sound  of  their  cheering,  he  set 
about  the  formation  of  the  troops  as  fast  as  they  arrived  on  the 
lower  beach.     From  a  masked  battery  on  the  slopes  twenty  feet 

'  The  spot  of  Wolfe's  landing  is  pointed  out  to-day  as  "  Wolfe's  Rock." 
— O.  Macdonald,  Last  Siege  of  Louisbourg^  p.  149 


WOLFE'S   LANDING  373 

above  them  a  raking  fire  was  dealt  out.  Many  fell  while  forming 
ranks,  but  so  far  from  daunting,  only  made  the  rest  fiercer  for 
their  prey.  At  a  signal  Wolfe  himself  led  the  advance  up  the 
steep  rocks.  The  first  batteiy  was  carried  by  storm,  and  still 
Wolfe  pushed  on  to  other  entrenchments  of  the  enemy.  Behind 
him  in  support  came  Lawrence  and  his  division.  The  French,  who 
opposed  this  unceremonious  landing,  now  feared  their  retreat  would 
be  cut  off*,  and  forsaking  their  cannon  and  stores  broke  pell-mell 
for  Louisbourg  four  miles  away,  followed  hotly  over  swamps  and 
hillocks  by  Wolfe  and  Amherst.  The  fugitives  reached  the  forti- 
fications from  whence  now  a  terrific  cannonade  was  opened.  This, 
whatever  its  lethal  effect,  at  least  served  to  show  the  British  pre- 
cisely the  area  of  safety  in  beginning  a  siege.  Unluckily,  the  siege 
train  was  not  landed,  and  the  difficulties  of  the  process  considering 
the  weather  were  very  great.  Meanwhile  the  troops  took  possession 
of  ground  before  the  town  and  formed  a  camp,  although  three  days 
passed  before  they  got  artillery,  tents,  provisions  or  ammunition. 
Valuable  time  was  thus  lost.  "  It  was  soon  evident,"  says  Corbett, 
"  that  there  was  one  operation  which  alone  could  reduce  the  place 
within  the  appointed  time,  and  that  was  that  the  fleet  should  enter 
the  harbour.  Yet  in  spite  of  Pitfs  hint,  Boscawen  seems  never  to 
have  entertained  the  idea."  Far  too  cautious  was  the  Admiral, 
in  Wolfe's  opinion,  as  we  shall  see. 

By  the  12th  it  was  known  to  Amherst  that  the  French  had 
called  in  their  outposts  and  were  concentrating  all  their  strength 
upon  the  fortress  itself.  The  harbour  containing  the  enemy's  fleet 
had  been  protected  by  two  batteries,  one,  the  Batterie  Royale,  far 
within  the  inlet,  and  another  on  Goat  Island  at  its  entrance.^ 
When  Brigadier  Wolfe  heard  that  the  French  had  dismantled 
Batterie  Royale  he  thought  he  perceived  a  chance  not  to  be  lost. 
If  the  ships  and  Goat  Island  battery  could  be  attacked  from  the 
land  shore  of  the  harl)oui*  Boscawen  would  be  enabled  to  enter  the 
port  with  his  fleet.^He  laid  his  scheme  immediately  before  Am- 
herst, who  ordered  him  to  advance  with  his  brigade  upon  Light- 
house Point,  commanding  the  sea-wall  of  the  to^vn,  and  capture  it. 
The  artillery  and  stores  for  this  movement  were  at  the  same  time 
dispatched  by  sea  to  meet  Wolfe  at  L'Orembeck.  On  an'ival  at 
the  Lighthouse  Wolfe  sent  the  following  to  Amherst  ^ — 

1  There  has  been  much  historical  confusion  between  Goat  Island  and 
^'Battery  Island."     The  island  battery  was  already  dismantled. 

2  It  is  endorsed  by  Amherst,  "  Brigadier  AVolfe's  Intentions  at  the  Light- 
house Point." 


374    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

"  Brigadier  Wolfe  proposes  to  establish  a  post  of  200  regulars 
and  a  company  of  Rangers  at  L'Orembeck  ;  he  intends  likewise  to 
establish  another  post  of  200  regulars  and  a  company  of  Rangers 
at  the  end  of  the  North-east  Harbour.  The  regular  troops  are  to 
fortify  their  camp,  and  the  irregulars  are  to  keep  a  constant  patrol, 
to  endeavour  to  intercept  any  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  island, 
Canadians  or  others ;  at  least,  to  give  notice  of  their  march  to  the 
officer  commanding  the  regular  troops,  who  will  inform  the 
Brigadier  of  it,  and  give  the  earliest  notice  he  can  to  Brigadier 
Lawrence  upon  the  left  of  the  army,  who  will  report  it  to  the 
Commander-in-Chief. 

"Another  post  of  fifty  regulars  and  ten  Rangers  will  be  established 
at  the  nearest  L'Orembeck  ;  the  two  L'Orembeck  parties  will  be 
supplied  with  provisions  from  the  sea,  and  the  party  at  the  end  of 
the  harbour  will  be  supplied  from  the  camp  or  from  the  Light- 
house. .  .  .  The  remaining  body  of  Light  Infantry  and  the 
irregulars,  must  take  post  upon  the  Mire  Road,  about  half  way 
between  the  camp  and  the  North-east  Harbour,  and  communicate 
with  both  the  one  and  the  other  by  posts  and  patrols."" 

Wolfe  kept  steadily  at  it  in  spite  of  severe  weather,  but  all  was 
not  in  readiness  until  the  18th.  On  that  day  he  wrote  the 
following  orders  to  the  brigade — 

"  Two  batteries  are  to  be  constructed  this  night,  for  one  iron 
24-pounder  each,  with  a  firm,  well-rammed  parapet,  and  the 
platform  laid  with  the  utmost  care.  These  must  be  finished  before 
daybreak,  and  whatever  remains  to  be  done  at  the  Great  Mortar 
Battery  must  be  completed  this  night ;  every  engineer  and  every 
officer  of  artillery  exerting  himself  in  his  proper  department.  To- 
morrow at  sunset,  it  is  proposed  to  begin  to  bombard  and  cannonade 
the  French  fleet ;  the  Captain  of  Artillery  to  dispose  his  party  so 
that  all  the  ordnance  may  be  equally  well  served,  according  to  the 
following  distribution  : 

"  The  battery  at  the  end  of  the  North-east  Harbour,  one  24- 
and  one  12-pounder. 

"  Hautbitser  (sic)  Battery,  under  the  hill  near  the  careening 
wharf  to  fire  a  ricochet. 

"  Great  Bomb  Battery,  in  the  bottom  before  Goreham's  camp,  of 
four  mortars  and  six  royals. 

"  Two  24-pounders,  to  fire  a  ricochet  at  the  masts  and  rigging 
from  the  bottom  before  Goreham's  camp  and  the  Lighthouse 
HilL 


HIS   ORDERS   TO   BOMBARD       375 

"  One  24-pounder  and  two  12  ditto,  from  the  right  of  the 
Lighthouse  Hill,  to  fire  likewise  a  ricochet  at  the  masts  and 
rigging. 

"  Two  24-poiinders  to  be  placed  in  battery,  to  fire  at  the  ships'* 
hulls  or  lower  masts. 

"  The  Captain  of  Artillery  may  demand  as  many  men  as  he  thinks 
necessary  to  assist  in  serving  the  artillery,  and  as  many  pioneers  as 
are  requisite,  and  they  shall  be  furnished  from  the  army.  The 
troops  are  all  to  be  under  arms  time  enough  to  march  to  their 
respective  posts  before  the  firing  begins.  Colonel  Morris  is  to 
take  post,  with  the  detachments  of  the  right  brigade,  upon  the 
hills  above  the  careening  wharf,  where  the  Highlanders  now  are. 
Lieut. -Colonel  Hales  (with  three  companies  of  Grenadiers)  is  to 
post  himself  behind  the  little  hills  and  rising  grounds  where 
Captain  Goreham's  company  is  encamped,  in  readiness  to  support 
the  Great  Bomb  Battery,  if  the  enemy  should  think  fit  to  attack 
it.  The  remaining  company  of  Grenadiers  is  to  be  placed  in  small 
parties,  nearer  to  the  Bomb  Battery,  in  the  safest  situation  that 
can  be  found.  Goreham's  company  (if  it  returns  in  time)  is  to  be 
concealed  in  proper  places  to  the  right  of  this  company  of 
Grenadiers,  as  near  the  sea  as  they  can  lie  in  safety.  As  the  three 
companies  of  Grenadiers  are  placed  near  the  magazine  of  the  Grand 
Battery,  Lieut.-Colonel  Hales  must  take  care  that  no  fire  be 
permitted.  Colonel  Rollo,  with  the  detachments  of  the  left  and 
centre,  is  to  take  post  upon  the  Lighthouse  Hill  in  readiness  to 
march  down  to  the  enemy  in  case  they  are  disposed  to  land. 

"  All  the  detachments  are  to  be  placed  with  the  greatest  po.ssible 
regard  to  their  security  ;  because  the  French  ships  in  their  confusion 
and  disorder  may  probably  fire  their  guns  at  random,  and  if  the 
men  are  properly  concealed  we  shall  suffer  very  little  loss.  The 
two  youngest  companies  are  to  be  left  for  the  guard  of  the  camp 
and  the  rest  to  guard  the  magazine.  The  officers  commanding 
these  companies  are  to  make  proper  detachments  and  place  a 
necessary  number  of  sentries  for  the  preservation  of  the  tents,  huts, 
magazines,  stores,  etc.,  and  they  are  not  to  allow  their  men  to 
get  in  numbers  upon  the  tops  of  hills,  that  no  accident  may 
happen. 

"  The  firing  of  the  mortars,  hautbitsers,  and  ricochet  shot  is  to 
cease  a  little  before  daybreak,  that  all  the  troops,  except  a  company 
at  each  station,  may  return  to  their  camp  to  take  their  rest  and 
refreshment ;  and  the  officers  will  conduct  them  back  with  the 
utmost    caution.     The    battery    at    the   end   of  the   North-east 


376     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Harbour,  and  the  two  iron  24-pounders  that  are  placed  in  battery 
upon  the  upper  part  of  the  Lighthouse  Hill,  are  to  continue  firing 
all  day  at  the  masts  and  rigging  of  the  ships,  that  the  enemy  may 
have  no  rest,  nor  time  to  repair  their  damages.  Although  it  seems 
improbable  that  the  French  should  presume  to  land  and  attack 
any  of  our  batteries,  yet  it  is  right  to  be  prepared  to  receive  them, 
or  to  drive  them  back  to  their  boats  ;  therefore,  when  two  sky- 
rockets are  fired  immediately  after  each  other  from  the  Brigadier's 
station,  all  the  troops  are  to  move  down  the  hills,  and  forward 
with  quick  pace,  and  charge  the  enemy  with  their  bayonets, 
endeavouring  to  gain  their  flanks  by  detachments  made  on  purpose ; 
Colonel  Morris  to  their  left,  supposing  them  to  land  anywhere  near 
the  Bomb  Battery,  and  Colonel  RoUo  to  their  right,  while  the 
Grenadiers  attack  them  in  front  without  firing  a  shot. 

"  The  Brigadier-General  will  be  all  night  upon  the  hill  where 
Colonel  Morris's  detachment  is  to  be  posted,  unless  some  particular 
business  should  require  him  in  another  part ;  in  which  case,  he  will 
leave  word  where  he  is  to  be  found.  One  hundred  Highlanders  will 
be  posted  along  the  shore  of  the  North-east  Harbour,  from  Colonel 
Morris's  post  to  Major  Ross's.  Part  of  the  left  wing  and  Light 
Infantry  of  the  Army  will  be  in  motion  during  this  attack,  ready 
to  sustain  the  detached  posts,  to  alarm  the  enemy  on  every  side, 
and  to  increase  their  confusion.  A  sky-rocket  will  be  fired  from 
Colonel  Morris's  post,  which  will  be  answered  by  Sir  Charles 
Hardy's  squadron  and  the  grand  army ;  and  when  a  second  sky- 
rocket is  fired  from  the  same  hill,  the  batteries  begin,  with  short 
intervals  at  first,  as  will  make  their  fire  regular  and  constant. 
The  officers  of  artillery,  the  engineers,  and  Major  Ross's  detach- 
ment, are  to  have  copies  of  these  orders." 

Wolfe's  first  objective  was  the  French  fleet  and  he  pinned  his 
faith  to  the  British  gunners.  A  few  hours  before  the  bombardment 
he  wrote  Amherst — 

^    To  Major-General  Amherst. 

.  End  of  North-east  Harbour,  19^^  Jurw,  1758. 

Dear  SiR,-^My  posts  are  now  so  fortified  that  I  can  afford 
you  the  two  companies  of  Yankees,  and  the  more  as  they  are 
better  for  ranging  and  scouting  than  either  work  or  vigilance. 
My  whole  affair  now  is  the  spade  and  pickaxe,  and  one  hundred 
more  pioneers  would  be  of  great  assistance.  I  shall  recall  my 
out  parties,  and  collect  within  my  entrenchments,  in  order  to 
carry  on  the  work  with  greater  vigour.     I  mean  to  take  post  on 


BOMBARDMENT   BEGINS  377 

your  side  the  harbour,  and  erect  a  battery,  provided  you  will 
give  me  any  countenance  by  seizing  and  entrenching  the  rising 
ground  above  the  Grand  Battery.  I'm  very  sure  that  the 
artillery  with  me  can  be  carried  with  greater  ease  to  the  Queue 
de  Franchee  than  yours  from  Gabarus  Bay.  You  call  Green 
Hill,  Green  Island,  but  I  understand  your  meaning.  The  excess 
of  rum  is  bad,  but  the  liquor  delivered  out  in  small  quantities — 
half  a  gill  a  man,  and  mixed  with  water — is  a  most  salutary 
drink,  and  the  cheapest  pay  for  work  that  can  be  given. 
Mr.  Boscawen  is  a  very  judicious  man,  but  in  this  particular 
he  is  much  in  the  wrong ;  and  he  proceeds  from  his  confounding 
the  abuse  with  the  use,  and  sailors  with  soldiers. 

There  is  a  fine  brew-house,  between  us  and  the  Grand 
Battery,  for  spruce  beer;  copper  all  in  good  order  and  very 
valuable.  I  see  the  smoke  of  L'Orembeck,  and  therefore  con- 
clude that  the  straggling  inhabitants  have  rashly  attacked  our 
people,  and  are  punished  for  their  insolence.  I  have  ordered 
Sunderland  to  bring  off  any  good  shallops  he  can  find  for  the 
use  of  the  army,  when  you  would  have  fish. 

About  ten  this  night  you  will  see  my  signals.  Are  you  not 
surprised  to  find  that  I  have  a  battery  here  ?  The  ground  upon 
which  I  propose  to  erect  a  formidable  battery  against  the  Island 
Battery  is  so  much  exposed,  that  I  must  wait  for  a  dark  night 
or  a  fog  to  get  it  up.  In  the  meanwhile  the  same  bomb-battery 
that  annoys  the  shipping  can  be  turned  upon  the  island,  and 
shall  be  when  I  see  what  effects  we  work  upon  their  men-of- 
war,  who,  I  believe,  are  in  a  confounded  scrape ;  that  is 
if  our  bombardiers  are  worth  a  farthing.  I  have  the  honour 
to  be, 

Dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 
To  His  Excellency  Major-General  Amherst^ 
Commander-in-chief. 

Although  the  Brigadier  was  disappointed  somewhat  in  the 
skill  of  his  bombardiers,  yet  it  was  enough  to  frighten  the  French 
Admiral,  Des  Gouttes,  nearly  out  of  his  wits.  He  wanted  to 
escape  out  of  the  harbour  while  there  was  still  a  chance  of  success, 
but  Drucourt,  the  Governor,  backed  by  a  council  of  war,  refused 
leave. 


378     LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  Major-General  Amherst. 

June  20th,  1758. 

Dear  Sir, — The  hautbitser  carriage  broke  after  firing  about 
ten  rounds,  so  that  we  were  soon  hors  de  combat  in  our  strongest 
quarter.  Two  pieces  of  24  stuck  so  fast,  as  they  were 
carrying  down  to  our  battery,  that  human  strength  could  not 
move  them  time  enough  for  service ;  then  my  two  batteries  near 
the  Lighthouse  Point  were  not  quite  in  condition  of  service ;  to 
which  an  extraordinary  circumstance  may  be  added,  that  one  of 
my  24-pounders — iron — was  so  stuffed  in  the  touch-hole  that 
it  could  not  be  employed  all  night,  besides  the  distance  was 
rather  too  great  from  the  end  of  the  North-east  Harbour. 
I  enclose  you  Captain  Strachey''s^  letter,  and  beg  you  will  be 
pleased  to  provide  us  with  what  is  necessary  to  repair  these 
hautbitsers,  which  we  are  all  convinced  are  a  most  tremendous 
ordnance.  The  injury  they  received,  proceeded,  I  believe,  from 
the  want  of  a  platform  of  wood,  and  we  are  in  great  want  of 
plank,  because  a  good  deal  has  been  used  to  get  the  cannon 
through  the  bogs.  We  reckon  that  the  ships  were  struck  with 
about  three  shells,  and  one  of  them  appears  to  be  somewhat 
damaged ;  and  now  that  we  have  got  their  distance  better,  I 
hope  the  firing  will  be  more  effectual.  I  intend  to  errect  a 
battery  of  one  24-  and  two  12-pounders  on  the  other  side  of  the 
water,  to  fire  red-hot  shot ;  but  I  can't  hope  to  get  it  done,  nor 
to  support  it,  unless  you  will  be  pleased  to  take  post  nearer  to 
the  Grand  Battery. 

I  send  you  an  account  of  the  behaviour  of  my  party  at 
L'Orembeck, — I  mean  the  subalterns,  which,  I  believe,  will 
surprise  you.  They  were,  as  far  as  I  can  find,  all  drunk  and 
asleep, — sentries,  guards,  and  all.  The  rum  was  sold  to  them 
by  the  masters  of  the  ships  they  went  in,  whose  names  you  shall 
have,  and  who  should  be  made  an  example  of.  Our  earth  and 
sod  are  so  very  bad  that  I  am  obliged  to  have  recourse  to  sand- 
bags, and  our  wood  for  pickets  is  extremely  unfavourable  ;  not- 
withstanding which  difficulties  I  shall  persevere  till  we  demolish 
these  gentlemen,  and  then  fall  to  work  upon  the  island.  They 
have  thrown  away  a  vast  quantity  of  shot  without  hurting  a 
man ;  and  indeed,  unless  by  an  extraordinary  accident,  we  are 
not  likely  to  lose  many.  Mr.  Strachey  complains  also  of  his 
fusees,  and  he  complains  that  he  has  no  relief  for  his  men,  and 

'  Afterwards  Sir  Henry  Strachey,  Bart.     In  1764  he  went  out  to  India 
as  Private  Secretary  to  Lord  Clive. 


GOAT  ISLAND   SILENCED         379 

that  as  the  batteries  are  augmented  and  extended,  he  will  hardly 
be  able  to  serve  them.  We  give  them  all  possible  assistance. 
Their  confusion  last  night  when  we  began  was  inexpressible,  and 
their  ships  were  lumbered  ;  prepared,  I  suppose,  to  sail.  They 
cleared  and  made  ready,  and  are  now  altering  their  position,  in 
order  to  bring  all  their  broadsides  to  bear  against  the  hills.  I 
shall  work  night  and  day  to  forward  this  business.  Fascines, 
sods,  etc.,  must  be  heaped  up  in  immense  quantities.  As  our 
fire  increases,  theirs  will  perhaps  weaken.  I  found  there  was  no 
manner  of  necessity  for  keeping  the  men  out,  so  contented  myself 
with  small  guards  to  give  the  men  rest. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe.  1^ 

The  bombardment  was  rigorously  maintained  against  Goat 
Island  until  the  25th,  when  the  battery  there  was  silenced.  Wolfe 
then  rejoined  Amherst,  leaving  a  detachment  of  artillery  behind  to 
defend  it  against  its  former  possessors.  Yet  even  now  Boscawen 
did  not  make  the  incui'sion  Wolfe  expected,  and  very  soon  the 
enemy  sank  four  of  their  five  remaining  frigates  ^  at  the  mouth  of 
the  harbour  in  order  to  obstruct  the  British  entrance,  bringing  the 
crews  ashore  to  reinforce  the  garrison. ^  The  main  besieging  army 
were  now  about  to  push  approaches  against  the  west  gate  of  the 
great  fortress,  and  commence  a  real  attack.  On  the  morning  of 
July  1  a  skilful  sortie  was  made  from  the  town,  but  Wolfe  was 
alert  and  ready  for  the  foe,  who  were  driven  back  with  loss. 
Later  in  the  day  Wolfe  set  up  a  powerful  battery  on  the  hills 
overlooking  Louisbourg  to  the  north  and  began  a  new  bombard- 
ment. In  reporting  the  governor's  complaints  that  civilians  and 
women  were  being  killed  by  shells,  Wolfe  wrote — 

To  Major-General  Amherst. 

Dear  Sir, — When  the  French  are  in  a  scrape,  they  are 
ready  to  cry  out  in  behalf  of  the  human  species ;  when  fortune 
favours  them,  none  more  bloody,  more  inhuman.  Montcalm 
has  changed  the  very  nature  of  war,  and  has  forced  us,  in  some 
measure,  to  a  deterring  and  dreadful   vengeance.      I  shall  set 

^  Out  of  six  frigates  one_,  the  Echo,  had  been  captured  while  essaying  to 
escape  to  Quebec.  There  were  now  in  Louisbourg  harbour  five  French  ships 
of  the  Hne  and  one  frigate. 

'^  Thirty  men  had  been  detached  under  Lieutenant  Crosbie  to  L'Orembeck 
to  protect  the  ships  carrying  fish  for  the  army.  New  England  rum  bought 
from  a  Boston  man  named  Stone  was  their  undoing. 


380     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

about  getting  things  in  readiness  for  this  battery,  and  must  be 
excused  for  three  or  four  days  from  other  duty.   \ 

It  was  hard  work  for  the  next  fortnight — the  hardest  most  of 
the  officers  present  had  ever  known.  An  approach  was  being 
formed,  involving  the  construction  of  roads  across  bogs,  and  the 
making  of  fascines  in  the  midst  of  thick  fogs  or  heavy  downpours 
of  rain.  As  if  the  work  were  not  enough,  the  terrible  small-pox 
raging  in  the  garrison  communicated  itself  to  the  besiegers.  At 
one  time  a  hundred  carpenters  under  Colonel  Messervey  were  hors 
de  combat,  that  officer  and  his  son  both  succumbing.  Luckily,  the 
utmost  unity  prevailed  between  the  navy  and  army,  and  Boscawen 
constantly  sent  men  to  do  soldiers'  work  in  the  batteries. 

Sorties  took  place  frequently  from  the  fort.  His  favourite 
Light  Infantry  had  been  highly  trained  by  Wolfe.  Their  fiercest 
onsets  were  followed  by  instant  retreat  behind  the  dunes  for  shelter, 
so  that  such  skirmishes  invariably  told  against  the  enemy.  This 
style  of  guerilla  warfare,  which  then  seemed  novel  and  won  much 
admiration,  was  the  result  of  Wolfe's  reading  in  history]  At  mess 
one  day  one  of  the  captains  remarked  that  these  tactfcs  reminded 
him  of  Xenophon's  description  of  the  Kaphovy^oi,  who  in  his  retreat 
over  the  mountains  harassed  his  rear.  Wolfe  smiled.  "  I  had  it 
from  Xenophon,"  he  said  simply,  "but  our  friends  here  are 
astonished  at  what  I  have  done  because  they  have  read  nothing." 

On  the  night  of  the  9th  the  French  enjoyed  a  stroke  of  good 
fortune.  A  company  of  Grenadiers  commanded  by  Captain  Lord 
Dundonald,  and  occupying  a  small  redan  on  shore,  were  surprised 
by  them.  Dundonald  and  some  of  the  others  were  killed,  and  but 
for  the  hasty  intervention  of  a  company  of  Highlanders  who  drove 
the  assailants  back,  the  rest  would  have  been  made  prisoners.  Four 
days  later  the  Brigadier  reported  to  Amherst  that  he  was  not 
satisfied  with  the  work  of  the  Engineers.  "  The  parapets  in  general 
are  too  thin  and  the  banquettes  everywhere  too  narrow.  The  trench 
of  the  parallel  should  be  wide,  and  the  parapets  more  sloping.  .  .  ." 
There  were  no  accidents  in  the  trenches  to  report,  "  very  few  shots 
in  the  night ;  but  this  morning  they  threw  several  shells  very  near 
the  lodgments." 

The  siege  continued  to  be  pushed  forward  vigorously,  in  spite 
of  heavy  rains.  On  the  16th  Wolfe  led  a  body  of  Highlanders 
and  Grenadiers  to  the  heights  in  front  of  the  fort,  captured  them 
and  got  a  footing  in  the  glacis,  from  which  he  poured  down 
musketry  on   the   parapet  and   embrasures.     Things  were   going 


CLOSING   IN  881 

forward  with  certainty  when  on  the  21st  a  lucky  bombardier  sent 
a  bomb  straight  on  the  poop  of  the  CeUhx,  her  magazine  exploded 
and  set  fire  to  two  other  ships.  The  unhappy  crews  could  not 
escape  to  the  town,  owing  to  the  brisk  play  of  the  British  batteries. 
Soon  Des  Gouttes  had  only  two  ships  left.  On  the  following  day 
shells  set  the  citadel  in  a  blaze,  but  Amherst  gave  orders  that  the 
town  w^as  not  to  be  destroyed.  The  French  barracks  caught  next, 
and  it  was  seen  both  within  and  without  that  Louisbourg  was 
doomed.  Nor  had  Brigadier  Wolfe  paused  in  his  besieging  work. 
He  writes  Amherst — 

To  Major-General  Amherst. 

Trenches  at  daybreak,  26th  July. 

Dear  Sir, — The  five-gun  battery  is  finished,  and  the  cannon 
in  readiness  to  mount.  We  want  platforms,  artillery  officers  to 
take  the  direction,  and  ammunition.  If  these  are  sent  early,  we 
may  batter  in  breach  this  afternoon.  Holland  has  opened  a 
new  boyau,  has  carried  on  about  140  or  150  yards,  and  is  now 
within  fifty  or  sixty  yards  of  the  glacis.  The  enemy  were 
apprehensive  of  a  storm,  and  fired  smartly  for  about  half  an  hour, 
which  drove  the  workmen  in  ;  but  when  the  fire  ceased  they 
returned  to  their  business,  and  did  a  great  deal.  You  will  be 
pleased  to  indulge  me  with  six  hours''  rest,  that  I  may  serve  in 
the  trenches  at  night. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Lest  one  wonder  why  Drucour  held  out  so  long  in  the  face  of 
such  a  forlorn  hope  it  must  be  understood  that  it  was  in  the  highest 
degree  important  to  French  interests  on  the  continent  to  gain 
time.  In  this  particular  his  doggedness  eventually  succeeded.  As 
long  as  he  could  make  a  resistance  to  the  main  British  army  the 
chances  of  Quebec's  safety  for  that  season  would  be  increased,  and 
Amherst  could  not  reinforce  Abercrombie.  Moreover,  succour 
might  at  the  last  moment  reach  him  either  from  France  or  Canada. 
Wherefore  the  Governor  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the  representations 
and  entreaties  of  the  townsfolk,  and  steeled  his  heart  against  the 
sufferings  of  his  garrison.  For  more  than  a  week  the  soldiers  had 
not  slept ;  when  wounded  they  had  no  secure  spot  to  lie  where  the 
shells  of  the  besiegers  would  not  reach  them.  Ammunition  was 
growing  scarce.  Knowing  something  of  this  Boscawen  resolved  on 
a  bold  step,  the  first  of  that  character  he  had  ventured  upon  since 


382     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

the  beginning  of  the  siege.  On  the  night  of  the  25th  a  flotilla 
under  Captains  Laforey  and  Balfour,  consisting  of  600  seamen, 
crept  into  the  harbour  and  surprised  both  the  remaining  French 
vessels,  the  Bienfaisant  and  the  Prudent  yielding  almost  without 
a  blow.  The  Prudent  they  were  forced  to  burn  when  she  ran 
aground,  but  Des  Gouttes"*  flagship  they  towed  off"  under  Wolfe"'s 
batteries.  A  crowning  misfortune  for  the  French  in  Louisbourg 
this,  for  it  left  the  harbour  front  of  the  fortress  completely  exposed. 
On  the  following  day  a  message  came  from  Drucour  offering  to 
capitulate.  The  joint  commanders  returned  a  reply  that  they  did 
not  wish  any  further  bloodshed,  but  that  a  capitulation  was  not 
enough;  they  required  a  surrender  at  discretion.  Otherwise  the 
French  would  pay  the  penalty  of  further  resistance.  Drucour 
declared  that  rather  than  accept  such  terms  he  would  suffer  the 
consequences.  But  seeing  the  hopelessness  of  the  situation,  the 
garrison  and  inhabitants  prevailed  upon  the  Governor  to  alter  his 
mind.  The  French  officer  once  more  sought  the  British  camp. 
Trusting  to  the  honour  of  a  generous  foe,  ran  Drucour's  latest 
message,  he  would  submit  to  the  law  of  force.^ 

So  fell  Louisbourg,  the  most  costly  and  most  elaborately 
constructed  fortress  in  the  New  World.  With  it  all  Cape  Breton 
and  Isle  St.  Jean  (Prince  Edward's  Island)  passed  into  British 
hands.  On  the  morning  of  the  27th  July  Porte  Dauphine  and 
the  west  gate  were  opened,  and  at  noon  three  thousand  gallant 
French  soldiers,  drawn  up  before  Whitmore,  laid  down  their  arms 
on  the  esplanade,  besides  nearly  three  thousand  sailors  made 
prisoners.2 

Wolfe  writes  to  his  mother,  to  whom  he  had  not  penned  any 
letter  since  leaving  Halifax,  two  months  before — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Camp  before  Louisbourg^  July  27th,  1768. 
Dear  Madam, — I  went  into  Louisbourg  this  morning  to  pay 
my  devoirs  to  the  ladies,  but  found  them  all  so  pale  and  thin 
with  long  confinement  in  a  casemate,  that  I  made  my  visit  very 
short.  The  poor  women  have  been  heartily  frightened,  as  well 
they  might ;  but  no  real  harm,  either  during  the  siege  or  after 
it,  has  befallen  any.     A  day  or  two  more,  and  they  would  have 

^  "  Letter  of  Chevalier  de  Drucour.  Andover.  Oct.  1." — Annual  Register 
1758. 

^  Of  fifty-two  cannon  used  against  the  besiegers  forty  were  dismounted, 
broken,  or  spiked. 


FALL   OF  LOUISBOURG  383 

been  entirely  at  our  disposal.  I  was  determined  to  save  as 
many  lives,  and  prevent  as  much  violence  as  I  could,  because  I 
am  sure  such  a  step  would  be  very  acceptable  to  you,  and  very 
becoming.  We  have  gone  on  slow  and  sure,  and  at  length  have 
brought  things  to  a  very  good  conclusion  with  little  loss.  If  the 
rest  of  the  campaign  corresponds  with  the  beginning,  the  people 
of  England  will  have  no  reason  to  be  dissatisfied.  Kit  Mason 
paid  me  a  visit  yesterday,  in  perfect  health  ;  Gusty  is  very  well ; 
little  Herbert  has  never  had  an  opportunity  of  coming  near  me. 
His  ship  goes  home  with  the  French  prisoners,  which  Mrs. 
Herbert  will  be  pleased  to  know.  I  hope  to  be  with  you  by 
Christmas,  though  I  protest  to  you  that  I  had  much  rather 
besiege  a  place  than  pass  four  weeks  at  sea.  If  you  are  acquainted 
with  Mrs.  Bell  of  the  hospital,  I  beg  you  will  signify  to  her  that 
her  son  has  been  of  great  use  to  me  during  the  siege,  has  carried 
on  business  with  great  spirit  and  dispatch,  and  is  an  excellent 
officer.^  He  got  a  slight  scratch  upon  his  right  arm,  but  is  quite 
recovered,  though  I  have  forbid  his  writing  for  fear  of  any 
inflammation.  If  he  does  write,  Mrs.  Bell  must  not  take  it 
amiss  that  it  be  an  unusual  scrawl.  His  next  letter  will  be  writ 
with  a  fine  hand.  I  wish  you  all  manner  of  happiness,  and  am, 
dear  Madam, 

Your  very  affectionate  Son, 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

That  day  in  Louisbourg  must  have  been  very  favourable  for 
letter-writing,  for  two  other  epistles  came  from  the  Brigadier'^s  pen, 
the  first  to  his  father,  and  the  other  to  his  uncle. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Louisbourg,  27  July,  1758. 

Dear  Sir, — I  wrote  you  two  or  three  letters  from  Halifax  in 
relation  to  our  voyage  and  preparations  for  the  siege  of  Louis- 
burg.  We  got  out  as  soon  as  possible,  and  came  without  any 
accident  into  the  Bay  of  Gabarus,  made  a  disposition  for 
landing,  and  had  very  near  been  foiled  in  the  attempt.  By 
great  good  fortune,  however,  we  got  ashore,  proceeded  to  attack 
the  town  and  the  shipping,  and  at  length  have  succeeded  in  both. 
We  burned  four  ships  of  the  line  and  took  one :  the  enemy  sunk 
two  frigates,  and  our  squadron  has  caught  a  third,  so  that  we 
have  hurt  their  marine  a  little  and  possessed  ourselves  of  Louis- 

*  He  afterwards  made  Captain  Bell  one  of  his  aides-de-camp. 


384    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

burg.  Our  loss  in  all  this  affair — notwithstanding  the  most 
violent  fire  from  the  shipping,  does  not  amount  to  much  above 
400  men  killed  and  wounded :  that  of  the  enemy  at  least  three 
times  as  much.  The  garrison  to  the  number  of  about  two 
thousand  men,  are  prisoners  of  war  ;  they  laid  down  their  arms 
this  morning  ;  and  we  took  possession  of  the  town.  Two  of  our 
captains  of  grenadiers  are  killed  and  6  or  8  subaltern  officers, 
and  about  as  many  wounded.  The  Indians  and  Canadians  gave 
us  very  little  trouble.  I  believe  their  chief  was  killed  the  day 
we  landed,  and  the  rest  who  are  veritable  canaille  were  a  good 
deal  intimidated. 

We  have  a  report  this  day  from  the  continent  that  an  attack 
has  been  made  upon  some  advanced  post  of  the  enemy  with 
success,  but  that  my  Lord  Howe  ^  was  killed  in  the  beginning  by 
a  cannon  shot ;  his  loss  is  irreparable,  because  there  is  not  such 
another  soldier  in  his  Majesty's  service,  and  I  do  not  at  all 
doubt  but  that,  in  two  campaigns,  he  would  have  driven  the 
French  out  of  North  America.  We  have  been  rather  slow  in 
our  proceedings  but  still  I  hope  there  is  fine  weather  enough  left 
for  another  blow,  and  as  our  troops  are  improved  by  this  seige, 
the  sooner  we  strike  the  better.  Two  of  the  French  men  of  war 
were  boarded  in  the  night  by  the  boats  of  our  fleet,  and  both 
taken.  This  coup  was  quite  unexpected  and  astonishing,  and 
indeed,  if  we  had  not  been  very  well  informed  of  their  negligence 
and  security,  woiild  appear  to  be  a  rash  attempt.  I  see  my 
name  among  the  new  Colonels  ;  ^  I  hope  Fisher  will  take  care  of 
my  affairs,  as  he  is  intended  for  my  agent.  The  climate  is  very 
healthy,  though  the  air  is  foggy  and  disagreeable.  I  have  been 
always  very  well  since  we  landed,  and  have  got  through  this 
business  unhurt.     My  love  to  my  mother. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

To  Major  Walter  Wolfe. 

Camp  before  Louisbourg,  2*Jth  July,  1768. 

Dear  Sir, — It  is  impossible  to  go   into  any  detail  of  our 

operations  :  they  would  neither  amuse  nor  instruct,  and  we  are 

all  hurried  about  our  letters.    In  general,  it  may  be  said  that  we 

made  a  rash  and  ill-advised  attempt  to  land,  and  by  the  greatest 

^  Brigadier-General  Viscount  Howe,  elder  brother  of  Captain  Howe,  of 
the  Magtianine,  ^^  a  character  of  ancient  times/'  declared  Pitt,  "  a  complete 
model  of  military  virtue." 

2  Gazette,  April  21,  1768. 


4 


AMHERST'S   INTENTIONS  385 

of  good  fortune  imaginable  we  succeeded.  If  we  had  known  the 
country,  and  had  acted  with  more  vigour,  half  the  garrison  at 
least  (for  they  were  all  out)  must  have  fallen  into  our  hands 
immediately  we  landed.  Our  next  operations  were  exceed- 
ingly slow  and  injudicious,  owing  partly  to  the  difficulty  of 
landing  our  stores  and  artillery,  and  partly  to  the  ignorance  and 
inexperience  of  the  engineers. 

The  Indians  of  the  island  gave  us  very  little  trouble.  They 
attacked  one  of  my  posts  (for  I  commanded  a  detatched  corps) 
and  were  repulsed,  and  since  that  time  they  have  been  very  quiet. 
I  take  them  to  be  the  most  contemptible  canaille  upon  earth. 
Those  to  the  southward  are  much  braver  and  better  men  ;  these 
are  a  dastardly  set  of  bloody  rascals.  We  cut  them  to  pieces 
whenever  we  found  them,  in  return  for  a  thousand  acts  of  cruelty 
and  barbarity.  I  do  not  penetrate  our  General's  intentions.  If 
he  means  to  attack  Quebec,  he  must  not  lose  a  moment.  If  we 
have  good  pilots  to  take  us  up  the  River  St.  Lawrence  and  can 
land  at  any  tolerable  distance  from  the  place,  I  have  no  doubt  of 
the  event. 

There  is  a  report  that  Abercrombie''s  army  has  attacked  the 
enemy's  detached  posts,  and  forced  them, — that  my  Lord  Howe 
is  killed.  If  this  last  circumstance  be  true,  there  is  an  end  of  the 
expedition,  for  he  was  the  spirit  of  that  army,  and  the  very  best 
officer  in  the  King's  service,  I  lament  the  loss  as  one  of  the 
greatest  that  could  befall  the  nation  ;  but  perhaps  it  is  not  so, 
though  I  fear  it  much  from  the  forward,  determined  nature  of 
the  man.  Louisbourg  is  a  little  place  and  has  but  one  casemate 
in  it,  hardly  big  enough  to  hold  the  women.  Our  artillery 
made  havoc  amongst  them  (the  garrison),  and  soon  opened  the 
ramparts.  In  two  days  more  we  should  have  assaulted  the  place 
by  land  and  by  sea,  and  should  certainly  have  carried  it.  If 
this  force  had  been  properly  managed,  there  was  an  end  of  the 
French  colony  in  North  America  in  one  campaign  ;  for  we  have, 
exclusive  of  seamen  and  marines,  near  to  40,000  men  in  arms. 
I  wish  you  a  great  deal  of  health  and  peace,  and  am,  dear  Sir, 

Your  obedient  Nephew, 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  was  provided  in  the  capitulation  that  the  garrison  was  to 
yield  as  prisoners  of  war,  but  that  the  inhabitants  of  Cape  Breton 
and  its  appurtenances,  including  Louisbourg,  were  to  be  conveyed 
c  c 


386     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

to  France.  On  August  15,  no  fewer  than  5637  French  soldiers 
and  seamen  were  carried  prisoners  to  England.  During  the 
siege  the  enemy  had  lost  more  than  1000  men.  The  British 
loss  was  twenty-one  officers  and  150  privates  killed,  and  thirty 
officers  and  320  men  wounded.  Amongst  the  spoil  were  240 
pieces  of  ordnance  and  15,000  stand  of  arms. 

"  Short  by  comparison  as  is  the  story  of  the  New  World,""  remarks 
Mr.  Bradley,  "  he  would  be  a  dull  soul  who  could  stand  unmoved 
by  that  deserted,  unvisited,  surf-beaten  shore,  where  you  may  still 
trace  upon  the  turf  the  dim  lines  of  once  busy  streets,  and  mark 
the  green  mounds  which  hide  the  remains  of  the  great  bastions  of 
Louisbourg.  It  has  not  been  given  in  modern  times  to  many 
centres  of  note  and  power  to  enjoy  within  the  short  space  of  a 
century  and  a  half,  at  once  such  world-wide  fame  and  such  profound 
oblivion.""  ^ 

Two  days  afterwards  Wolfe  wrote  to  the  Commander-in-Chiefs 
brother  2  concerning  the  construction  of  roads  for  the  removal  of 
the  artillery  and  the  embarkation  of  the  troops  and  stores.  In 
this  letter  he  alludes  to  Lord  Ligonier's  promise  that  he  could 
return  at  the  end  of  the  campaign. 

To  Captain  William  Amherst. 

Louisburg,  2^th  July,  1758. 
Dear  Amherst, — 

We  have  been  guilty  of  a  blunder  in  transporting  the  French 
arms  to  the  camp ;  they  should  have  been  deposited,  under  a 
guard,  in  the  town,  and  kept  there  in  readiness  to  embark.  We 
have  given  ourselves  a  great  deal  of  unnecessary  trouble,  and 
might  have  employed  the  waggons  much  more  to  the  purpose. 
Put  the  General  in  mind  oi  pilots ;  I  daresay  there  are  plenty  in 
Louisbourg;  their  names  should  be  known,  in  order  to  their 
being  carried  on  board  the  men-of-war  a  day  or  two  before  we 
sail.  Troops  that  have  lost  their  arms,  or  have  bad  arms,  may 
be  supplied  from  these  in  the  garrison.  Please  to  hint  to  the 
General  that  the  French  flints  are  very  good,  and  may  be  useful 
in  his  army.  I  write  this  by  way  of  memorandum,  knowing  how 
many  matters  the  general  must  have  upon  his  hands  in  this  hour 
of  business.     When  does  our  express  go  off? 

^  Bradley,  Fight  with  France  for  North  America,  p.  230. 

2  "  Captain  William  Amherst^  whose  son  became  Earl  Amherst,  was  subse- 
quently a  Lieutenant-General,  Adjutant-General  of  the  Forces  and  Governor 
of  Newfoundland.     He  died  in  1781."— Wright. 


RESOLVES   TO   GO   HOME  387 

As  I  am  pretty  much  resolved  not  to  stay  in  America  more 
than  this  campaign,  I  hope  the  General  will  not  put  me  to  the 
necessity  of  insisting  upon  the  Field  Marshall's  promise  that  I 
should  return  at  the  end  of  it.  The  corps  of  Light  Infantry 
requires  some  regulation ;  they  should  have  a  captain  to  every 
100  or  120,  and  exact  equal  numbers  from  every  regiment,  thirty 
per  battalion.  The  volunteers  should  be  again  joined  to  that 
corps,  with  command  of  their  respective  regiments ;  by  this 
method  they  will  be  formidable.  Their  powder-horns  are  good 
things. 

I  am,  dear  Amherst,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Wolfe's  belief,  expressed  in  the  course  of  a  long  letter  to 
Sackville,  that  Quebec  might  that  summer  have  fallen  was  justified. 
For  Montcalm  would  then  have  had  no  time  or  warning  to  make 
the  dispositions  he  subsequently  meide. 

To  Lord  George  Sackville. 

Louisbourg,  30<A  July,  1758. 

My  Lord, — Amherst  will  tell  your  Lordship  the  history  of 
the  siege  of  Louisbourg.  It  turned  out  much  as  I  expected  in 
every  particular.  We  treated  the  town  with  shot  and  shells, 
made  a  breach  in  the  Bastion  Dauphin,  got  the  scaling  ladders 
and  everything  ready  for  a  general  assault,  and  should  have  cut 
'em  to  pieces  in  24  hours  if  they  had  not  suiTendered.  Three 
of  their  men  of  war  were  burnt  by  an  accidental  shot  that  is  sup- 
posed to  have  struck  upon  iron  and  fired  some  powder  between 
decks.  The  other  two  were  boarded  by  the  boats  of  the  fleet  with 
incredible  audacity  and  conduct,  and  taken  under  the  guns  and 
within  reach  of  the  musquetry  and  ramparts.  All  the  ^ve  were 
disabled  before  these  accidents  happened.  They  had  a  numerous 
garrison,  but  ill-regulated  and  ill-conducted.  There  appeared 
very  little  judgment  and  still  less  spirit  in  their  defence.  Our 
landing  was  next  to  miraculous.  In  all  encounters  since  the 
day  we  came  ashore  the  enemy  has  been  worsted,  or  as  they  call 
it — Us  se  sont  hattu  en  retraite.  Our  trenches  were  carried 
within  40  or  50  yards  of  the  glacis  without  mantelets,  blinds 
or  sap. 

If  the  whole  fleet  of  France  had  been  in  the  harbour  (with 
a  superiority  without,  Uen  entendu)  they  would  have  been  all 
destroyed,  contrary  to  the  opinion  of  most  people  here,  sea 
and  land,  who  had  a  terrible  notion  of  their  broadsides.     By 

CO  2 


388    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

augmenting  the  artillery  upon  the  shore  in  proportion  to  their 
numbers  we  could  not  fail  of  success. 

The  French  had  12  great  mortars  in  readiness  to  bombard 
our  fleet  if  they  had  come  into  the  harbour,  notwithstanding 
which  the  place  in  its  best  condition  is  not  tenable  against  a 
squadron  of  men  of  war,  and  on  the  land  side  'tis  an  affair  of 
10  days  to  people  that  knew  the  country. 

The  French  have  lost  a  considerable  number  of  men  and  we 
on  the  contrary  have  suffered  very  little,  so  little  that  if  we  are 
carried  directly  to  Quebec,  notwithstanding  the  time  of  year,  I 
am  persuaded  we  shall  take  it. 

Mun-ay,  my  old  antagonist,\has  acted  with  infinite  spirit.  The 
public  is  indebted  to  him  for  great  services  in  advancing  by  every 
method  in  his  power  the  affairs  of  this  siege.  Amherst  no  doubt 
will  do  him  all  manner  of  justice,  and  your  lordship  will  get  him 
a  regiment  or  the  rank  of  colonel.  Little  Smith,^  your  acquaint- 
ance, has  been  with  me  the  whole  siege  (for  I  have  had  the  honour 
to  command  a  detached  corps  posted  from  the  Light  House  to 
the  Baruchois).  He  is  a  most  indefatigable,  active,  and  spirited 
man  and  has  a  just  claim  to  your  favour  and  friendship.  He  is 
slightly  woimded  with  a  musket  ball,  but  will  soon  be  well. 

The  Highlanders  have  behaved  with  distinction,  their  com- 
pany of  Grenadiers  has  suffered,  3  of  the  officers  killed  and  the 
fourth  dangerously  wounded.  Amherst's  regiment  lost  twenty 
or  two  and  twenty  Grenadiers  the  day  we  landed,  most  of  them 
were  drowned.  I  wouldn't  recommend  the  Bay  of  Gabarus  for 
a  descent,  especially  as  we  managed  it. 

Your  lordship  will  have  heard  the  story  of  my  Lord 
Dundonald's  surprise,  defeat,  and  death.  Whitmore's  Grenadiers 
took  satisfaction  for  the  affront  that  was  put  upon  us  by  the 
neglect  of  this  young  officer,  and  beat  the  French  back  into 
the  town  with  loss.  Our  troops  scalped  an  Indian  Sachem  the 
day  we  landed,  and  have  killed  some  of  the  black  tribe  since. 
They  are  intimidated  and  scarce  dare  appear  before  the  most 
inconsiderable  of  our  parties. 

The  Admiral  and  the  General  have  carried  on  public  service 
with  great  harmony,  industry,  and  union.  Mr.  Boscawen  has 
given  all  and  even  more  than  we  could  ask  of  him.  He  has 
furnished    arms    and    ammunition,   pioneers,    sappers,    miners, 


Lieut.-Col.  the  Hon.  James  Murray  and  Wolfe  had  had  a  dispute  during 

[ighlands'  campaign,  1746. 

Hervey  Smith,  his  aide-de-camp  at  Quebec. 


FRENCH-CANADIAN   CRUELTY    389 

gunners,  carpenters,  boats,  and  is  I  must  confess  no  bad  fantassin 
himself,  and  an  excellent  back-hand  at  a  siege.  Sir  Charles 
Hardy,  too,  in  particular,  and  all  the  officers  of  the  navy  in 
general,  have  given  us  their  utmost  assistance  and  with  the 
greatest  cheerfulness  imaginable.  I  have  been  often  in  pain  for 
Sir  Charles''s  squadron  at  an  anchor  off  the  harbour's  mouth. 
They  rid  out  some  very  hard  gales  of  wind  rather  than  leave  an 
opening  for  the  French  to  escape,  but  notwithstanding  the 
utmost  diligence  on  his  side,  a  frigate  found  means  to  get  out 
and  is  gone  to  Europe  charge  de  fanfaronades.  I  had  the  satis- 
faction of  putting  two  or  three  haut-vitzer  shells  into  his  stem, 
and  to  shatter  him  a  little  with  some  of  your  lordship's  24 
pound  shot  before  he  retreated,  and  I  much  question  whether  he 
will  hold  out  the  voyage. 

The  French  troops  and  Marine  se  sentent  un  peu  rnortlfie  de 
leur  disgrace^  and  think  the  terms  hard  that  are  imposed  upon 
them.  This  blow  well  followed  will  give  a  blow  to  the  American 
War,  and  tho'  I  am  neither  inhuman  nor  rapacious  yet  I  own 
it  would  give  me  pleasure  to  see  the  Canadian  vermin  sacked  and 
pillaged  and  justly  repaid  their  unheard-of  cruelty.  If  my  Lady 
George  knew  my  sentiments  ''Homme  brutal  et  sanguinaire I '''' 
she  would  cry.  If  his  Majesty  had  thought  proper  to  let 
Carleton  come  with  us  as  engineer  and  Delaune  and  2  or  3  more 
for  the  light  Foot,  it  would  have  cut  the  matter  much  shorter, 
and  we  might  now  be  ruining  the  walls  of  Quebec  and  completing 
the  conquest  of  New  France.  So  much  depends  upon  the 
abilities  of  individuals  in  war,  that  there  cannot  be  too  great 
care  taken  in  the  choice  of  men  for  the  different  offices  of  trust 
and  importance. 

Before  I  finish  my  letter  it  may  not  be  amiss  to  observe  that 
to  defend  the  Isle  Royale  ^  it  is  necessary  to  have  a  body  of  4 
or  5  thousand  men  in  readiness  to  march  against  whatever  force 
of  the  enemy  attempts  to  land.  In  short,  there  must  be  an 
army  to  defend  the  island ;  the  re-inforcement  (to  form  a  corps 
for  this  purpose  jointly  with  the  Garrison)  should  be  sent  in 
May  and  carried  off  in  October.  We  must  not  trust  to  the 
place,  or  to  any  of  those  batteries  now  constructed  for  the 
defence  of  the  harbour.  When  the  ground  is  surveyed  I  shall 
do  myself  the  honour  to  point  out  to  your  lordship  some  proper 
spots  for  the  construction  of  new  batteries  which  may  be  done 
in  ten  days  with  facines,  and  be  much  stronger  than  any  of 
1  Prince  Edward's  Island. 


390    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

those  constructed  with  masonry.  We  have  a  report  among  us 
that  my  Lord  Howe  is  killed.  I  will  not  believe  such  bad 
tidings.  That  brave  officer  will  live,  I  hope,  to  contribute  his 
share  of  courage  and  abilities  to  support  our  reputation  and 
carry  on  our  affairs  with  success. 

Whitmore  is  a  poor,  old,  sleepy  man.  Blakeney  lost  St. 
Philips  by  ignorance  and  dotage  :  take  more  care  of  Louisbourg 
if  you  mean  to  keep  it. 

The  fascines  and  gabions  made  at  Halifax  were  articles  of 
the  last  degree  of  extravagance  and  bad  economy,  in  the  style 
of  that  Colony ;  but  in  other  respects  this  must  have  been  the 
cheapest  siege  that  ever  was  carried  on.  The  soldiers  worked 
with  the  utmost  cheerfulness,  and  upon  one  occasion  several 
women  turned  out  volunteers  to  drag  artillery  to  the  batteries. 
If  the  enemy  had  waited  for  the  assault  they  would  have  paid 
very  dear  for  their  presumption.  The  men  were  animated  with 
perfect  rage  against  them,  and  asked  impatiently  when  we  were 
to  storm  the  town. 

I  believe  we  might  have  cut  off  at  least  one  half  of  the 
garrison  the  day  we  landed,  if  the  country  had  been  as  well 
known  to  us  as  it  is  now ;  but  our  measures  have  been  cautious 
and  slow  from  the  beginning  to  the  end,  except  in  landing 
where  there  was  an  appearance  of  temerity. 

You  know  I  hold  Mr.  Knowles  in  the  utmost  contempt  as  an 
officer,  an  engineer,  and  a  citizen.  He  built  a  useless  cavalier 
upon  the  Bastion  Dauphin  which  fell  to  my  share  to  demolish, 
and  we  did  it  effectually  in  a  few  hours.  The  famous  marine 
cavalier  was  so  constructed  that  the  artillery  of  the  bastion 
upon  which  it  stood  had  hardly  room  to  work,  and  the  people 
were  so  sheltered  that  we  drove  'em  from  their  guns  with  our 
musquetry. 

I  have  just  learnt  that  the  ''Shannon""  is  under  sail,  and  I 
have  learnt  a  great  deal  of  bad  news — that  my  Lord  Howe  is 
certainly  killed,  and  Clarke  killed,  and  Abercombie's  army 
repulsed  with  considerable  loss.  We  are  told  too  that  the  fleet 
wants  provisions,  that  the  anchors  and  cables  of  the  transports 
have  been  so  damaged  in  Gabarus  Bay  that  an  expedition  up 
the  River  St.  Lawrence  is  now  impracticable. 

*Jth  Augiist. 
As  the  sea  officers  seem  to  think  that  no  attack  can  be  made 
from  Quebec  nor  no  diversion  up  the  River  St.  Lawrence,  why 


ADVICE   TO   SACKVILLE  391 

we  don"'t  send  immediate  reinforcements  to  Abercrombie  I 
cannot  divine.  I  have  told  Mr.  Amherst  that  if  Lawrence  has 
any  objection  to  going,  I  am  ready  to  embark  with  a  brigade 
or  whatever  he  pleases  to  send  up  to  Boston  or  New  York,  and 
if  he  does  not  find  me  some  emplo3niient  at  Gaspe  or  some- 
where else  (supposing  Lawrence  goes  to  the  Continent)  I  shall 
desire  my  demission  to  join  my  regiment  upon  the  expedition, 
although  I  can  hardly  hope  to  get  home  in  time  unless  you  are  all 
gone  to  St.  Philips.  The  ministry  of  England  do  not  see  that 
to  possess  the  Isle  of  Aix  with  5  or  6  battalions  and  a  fleet,  is 
one  or  other  of  the  most  brilliant  and  most  useful  strokes  that 
this  nation  can  possibly  strike.  It  stops  up  at  once  the 
harbours  of  Rochefort  and  Rochelle,  obstructs  and  ruins  the 
whole  trade  of  the  Bay  of  Biscay,  inevitably  brings  on  a  sea- 
fight  which  we  ought  by  all  means  to  aim  at,  and  is  the  finest 
diversion  that  can  possibly  be  made  with  a  small  force.  St. 
Martin's,  against  which  (by  the  preparations)  your  force  is 
probably  bent,  is  difficult  to  take,  and  of  little  use  when  you 
get  it,  whereas  the  other  has  every  advantage  that  I  have 
mentioned  and  is  besides  of  easy  defence.  If  you  will  honour 
me  with  the  command  of  4,000  upon  that  island  and  give  me 
a  good  quantity  of  artillery,  fascines,  and  sand-bags,  I  will 
establish  myself  in  such  a  manner  as  to  make  it  no  easy  matter 
to  drive  me  out,  and  I  am  very  sure  the  French  would  exchange 
Minorca  or  anything  else  to  get  it  back  again. 

We  hear  that  Mr.  Provost  has  got  a  Commission  as  Brigadier. 
He  is  most  universally  detested  by  all  ranks  of  people,  and  the 
ministers  cannot  do  worse  than  let  him  serve  in  the  army.  He 
is  fit  for  no  sort  of  command,  and  does  not  know  how  to  obey. 

The  arms,  stores,  etc.  for  Forbes"*  corps  were  so  long  in 
getting  to  him  that  the  Cherokee  Indians  went  off  just  as  he 
was  prepared  to  march.  They  were  tired  on  waiting  for  such 
tardy  warriors. 

Notwithstanding  the  unlucky  accident  that  has  betaken  the 
troops  under  Mr.  Abercromby  I  am  fully  persuaded  if  we  act 
vigorously  here  for  one  summer  more  and  can  get  people  who 
will  venture  up  to  Quebec — and  if  you  will  afterwards  (in  the 
autumn)  exert  your  utmost  force  in  the  West  Indies  by  joining 
the  superfluity  of  this  army  to  troops  from  Europe — such 
advantage  might  be  made  of  our  present  superiority  as  the 
enemy  would  not  easily  recover,  and  a  peace  may  be  procured 
upon  your  own  terms;  and  better  push  on  a  year  longer,  or 


392     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

even  two,  if  it  be  possible,  than  have  the  business  to  begin  again 
— six  or  eight  years  hence. 

I  am  afraid  that  this  time  Mr.  Abercromby  is  left  to  defend 
himself  with  the  remains  of  his  regular  troops.  The  Americans 
are  in  general  the  dirtiest  most  contemptible  cowardly  dogs  that 
you  can  conceive.  There  is  no  depending  on  them  in  action. 
They  fall  down  dead  in  their  own  dirt  and  desert  by  battalions, 
officers  and  all.  Such  rascals  as  those  are  rather  an  encumbrance 
than  any  real  strength  to  an  army.^ 

I  find  that  a  lieutenant  of  the  first  Regiment  is  put  over 
Carleton's  head.  Can  Sir  John  Ligonier  allow  his  Majesty  to 
remain  unacquainted  with  the  merit  of  that  officer,  and  can  he 
see  such  a  mark  of  displeasure  without  endeavouring  to  soften  or 
clear  the  matter  up  a  little  ?  A  man  of  honour  has  a  right  to 
expect  the  protection  of  his  Colonel  and  of  the  Commander  of 
the  troops,  and  he  can't  serve  without  it.  If  I  was  in  Carleton's 
place  I  wouldn't  stay  an  hour  in  the  army  after  being  aimed  at 
and  distinguished  in  so  remarkable  a  manner. 

If  you  have  been  upon  any  business,^  as  I  believe  you  have,  I 
heartily  hope  that  you  have  been  successful,  and  sorry  since  we 
have  so  little  to  do  here  that  I  couldn't  assist  at  the  head  of  my 
young  battalion. 

I  am,  my  Lord,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

There  was  a  fortnight  of  repose  for  Wolfe  and  the  army  after 
the  heroic  exertions  of  the  siege. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Camp  near  Louisbourg,  *Jth  August,  1758. 

Dear  Sir, — We  are  gathering  strawberries  and  other  wild 
fruits  of  the  country,  with  a  seeming  indifference  about  what  is 
doing  in  other  parts  of  the  world.  Our  army,  however,  on  the 
continent  wants  our  help,  as  they  have  been  repulsed  with  loss. 
My  Lord  Howe,  the  noblest  Englishman  that  has  appeared  in 
my  time,  and  the  best  soldier  in  the  army,  fell  by  the  hands  of 
a  couple  of  miscreants  that  did  not  dare  to  stay  long  enough  to 
see  him  fall.     Poor  Mrs.  Page^  will  die  of  grief;  and  I  reckon 

1  This  is  not  the  only  testimony  we  have  to  the  undisciplined  character  of 
the  Colonists,  even  then  ripe  for  rebellion.     See  Sparks'  Washington. 

2  Sackville  had  been  appointed  to  high  command  in  Germany. 

3  Judith,  daughter  of  the  first  Viscount  Howe  and  wife  of  Thomas,  son  of 
Sir  Gregory  Page,  Bart.     The  third  Lord  Howe  was  her  nephew. 


QUEBEC    'IMPRACTICABLE'       393 

my  good  friend  Sir  Gregory  will  be  greatly  concerned.  Heavens, 
what  a  loss  to  the  country !  the  bravest,  worthiest,  and  most 
intelligent  man  among  us !  I  thought  his  brother  would  have 
been  starved.  For  several  days  he  refused  to  eat,  and  could  not 
bear  to  have  anybody  near  him,  even  of  his  most  intimate 
friends.  The  excess  of  grief  is  at  length  worn  off,  and  I  hope 
he  will  do  well  again. 

I  am  in  a  kind  of  doubt  whether  I  go  to  the  continent  or 
not.  Abercromby  is  a  heavy  man,  and  Brigadier  Provost  the 
most  detestable  dog  upon  earth,  by  everybody's  account.  These 
two  officers  hate  one  another.  Now,  to  serve  in  an  army  so 
circumstanced  is  not  a  very  pleasing  business.  If  my  Lord 
Howe  had  lived,  I  should  have  been  very  happy  to  have  received 
his  orders ;  or  if  I  thought  that  I  could  be  useful  or  serviceable, 
the  ugly  face  of  affairs  there  wouldn't  discourage  me  from 
attempting  it.  If  the  King  had  not  been  pleased  to  give  me 
a  regiment,  I  should  have  ruined  myself  and  you ;  for  we  are  at 
a  vast  expense,  and  you  know  I  never  plunder, — except  some 
dried  cod  which  Captain  Rodney  ^  is  so  good  to  take  for  you  and 
your  friends.  I  much  doubt  if  it  will  be  worth  your  acceptance ; 
the  Madeira,  if  it  gets  home,  will  be  a  better  present.  Amongst 
other  good  things  that  are  derived  from  my  new  honours,  that 
of  paying  back  to  Fisher  the  kindness  he  has  done  me  is  not  the 
least ;  of  course  he  is  my  agent.  I  send  the  letter  of  attorney 
by  this  conveyance.  The  account  you  give  of  my  mother's 
improved  state  of  health,  and  the  good  condition  of  your  own, 
is  the  most  pleasing  part  of  your  letter.  If  you  will  send  the 
like  intelligence  to  the  continent  I  shall  help  to  make  war  very 
cheerfully,  though  my  carcase  is  not  of  the  toughest. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 


Wolfe  was  by  no  means,  as  we  see,  satisfied  with  the  simple 
capture  of  Louisbourg,  and  lu'ged  vehemently  upon  his  friend 
Amherst  that,  late  as  the  season  was,  an  attempt  on  Quebec  should 
be  made.  Amherst  replied  on  the  6th  :  "  La  belle  saison  will  get 
away  indeed;  what  I  most  wish  is  to  go  to  Quebec.  I  have 
proposed  it  to  the  Admiral,  who  is  the  best  judge  whether  or  no 
we  can  get  up  there,  and  yesterday  he  seemed  to  think  it 
impracticable." 

^  Afterwards  Lord  Rodney. 


394    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Wolfe's  reply  to  this  is  strong  enough,  and  left  no  doubt  as  to 
his  own  views. 

To  Major-General  Amherst. 

Tuesday  morning,  August  Qth,  1768. 

Dear  Sir, — All  accounts  agree  that  General  Abercroniby''s 
army  is  cut  deep,  and  all  the  last  advices  from  those  parts  trace 
the  bloody  steps  of  those  scoundrels  the  Indians.  As  an 
Englishman,  I  cannot  see  these  things  without  the  utmost 
horror  and  concern.  We  all  know  how  little  the  Americans 
are  to  be  trusted ;  by  this  time,  perhaps,  our  troops  are  left  to 
defend  themselves,  after  losing  the  best  of  our  officers.^  If  the 
Admiral  will  not  carry  us  to  Quebec,  reinforcements  should 
certainly  be  sent  to  the  continent  without  losing  a  moment's 
time.  The  companies  of  Rangers,  and  the  Light  Infantry, 
would  be  extremely  useful  at  this  juncture ;  whereas  here  they 
are  perfectly  idle,  and,  like  the  rest,  of  no  manner  of  service  to 
the  public.  If  Lawrence  has  any  objection  to  going  I  am  ready 
to  embark  with  four  or  five  battalions,  and  will  hasten  to  the 
assistance  of  our  countrymen.  I  wish  we  were  allowed  to  address 
the  Admiral,  or  I  wish  you  yourself,  Sir,  would  do  it  in  form. 

This  d d  French  garrison  take  up  our  time  and  attention, 

which  might  be  better  bestowed  upon  the  interesting  affairs  of 
the  continent.  The  transports  are  ready,  and  a  small  envoy 
would  carry  a  brigade  to  Boston  or  New  York.  With  the  rest 
of  the  troops  we  might  make  an  offensive  and  a  destructive  war 
in  the  Bay  of  Fundy  and  in  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence.  I  beg 
pardon  for  this  freedom,  but  I  cannot  look  coolly  upon  the 
bloody  inroads  of  those  hell-hounds  the  Canadians;  and  if 
nothing  further  is  to  be  done,  I  must  desire  leave  to  quit 
the  army. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  your  most  obedient  servant,  etc.,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Adopting  Wolfe''s  suggestion  Amherst  had  a  meeting  with 
Boscawen,  who  agreed  to  support  the  plan  and  send  a  detach- 
ment to  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  Quebec  being  impracticable. 
For  Ticonderoga  had  fallen,  and  Abercrombie's  retreat  made  it 
incumbent  on  Amherst  to  send  him  reinforcements  via  Boston. 
The  commanders  believed  they  would  be  able  to  send  three 
battalions  to  the  St.  Lawrence  and  two  to  the  Bay  of  Fundy. 

^  This  deserves  to  be  quoted  as  an  example  of  Wolfe's  penetration,  together 
with  his  famous  prophecy  of  empire  for  America,  in  his  next  letter. 


HIS   AMERICAN   PROPHECIES     395 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Louisbourg,  Wth  Aug.y  1768. 

Dear  Madam, — To  show  you  that  Mr.  Herbert  and  I  are 
acquainted  (though  not  so  well  nor  so  long  as  I  would  wish)  he 
can-ies  home  this  letter,  in  return  for  that  I  brought  him.  The 
poor  child  has  had  a  severe  campaign  and  would  (if  Mr.  Collins 
his  Captain  had  not  taken  great  care  of  him)  be  perished  with  the 
scurvy  long  since,  but  he  has  fallen  into  good  hands  and  seems  to 
be  pretty  healthy. 

The  early  season  in  this  country, — I  mean  the  months  of 
April  and^May, — are  intolerably  cold  and  disagreeable  ;  June  and 
July  are  foggy  ;  August  rainy  ;  September  has  always  a  tempest ; 
October  is  generally  a  dry,  fair  month  ;  and  the  winter  sets  in 
early  in  November.  Further  to  the  south,  and  along  the  con- 
tinent of  America  which  we  possess,  there  is  a  variety  of  climate, 
and,  for  the  most  part,  healthy  and  pleasant,  so  that  a  man  may, 
— if  he  gives  himself  the  trouble,  and  his  circumstances  permit — 
live  in  perpetual  spring  or  summer  by  changing  his  abode  with 
the  several  changes  of  the  seasons.  Such  is  our  extent  of  territory 
upon  this  fine  continent,  that  an  inhabitant  may  enjoy  the  kind 
influence  of  moderate  warmth  all  the  year  round.  These  colonies 
are  deeply  tinged  with  the  vices  and  bad  qualities  of  the  mother 
country ;  and,  indeed,  many  parts  of  it  are  peopled  with  those 
that  the  law  or  necessity  has  forced  upon  it.  Notwithstanding 
these  disadvantages,  and  notwithstanding  the  treachery  of  their 
neighbours  the  French,  and  the  cruelty  of  their  neighbours  the 
Indians,  worked  up  to  the  highest  pitch  by  the  former,  this  will, 
some  time  hence,  be  a  vast  empire,  the  seat  of  power  and  learn- 
ing. 

Nature  has  refused  them  nothing,  and  there  will  grow  a 
people  out  of  our  little  spot,  England,  that  will  fill  this  vast 
space,  and  divide  this  great  portion  of  the  globe  with  the 
Spaniards,  who  are  possessed  of  the  other  half.  If  we  had  been 
as  lucky  this  campaign  as  we  had  reason  to  expect,  and  had  not 
lost  the  great  man,  whom  I  shall  ever  lament,  the  comer-stone 
would  probably  have  been  laid  of  this  great  fabric.  It  is  my 
humble  opinion  that  the  French  name  would  soon  have  been 
unknown  in  North  America,  and  still  may  be  rooted  out,  if 
our  Government  will  follow  the  blows  they  have  given,  and 
prosecute  the  war  with  the  vigour  it  requires.  We  have 
been  extremely  fortimate  in  this  business.  If  Abercromby  had 
acted   with   half  as   much   caution   and   prudence   as    General 


396     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Amherst   did,   this   must  have   been   a  dear  campaign  to  the 
French. 

I  am,  dear  Madam,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 
To  HIS  Father. 

Louisbourg,  21st  August,  1768. 

Dear  Sir, — I  write  by  all  the  ships  that  go.  Sir  Charles 
Hardy  and  I  are  preparing  to  rob  the  fishermen  of  their  nets, 
and  to  bum  their  huts.  When  the  great  exploit  is  at  an 
end  (which  we  reckon  will  be  a  month's  or  five  weeks'  work), 
I  return  to  Louisbourg,  and  from  thence  to  England,  if  no 
orders  arrive  in  the  meanwhile  that  oblige  me  to  stay.  The 
fleet  do  not  go  up  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  nor  southward  to 
the  West  Indies,  so  that  of  necessity  they  must  get  away  from 
hence  before  the  bad  weather  sets  in,  leaving,  I  suppose,  a  few 
ships  in  the  Harbour  of  Halifax,  where  they  may  winter  very 
commodiously.  The  army  is  about  to  disperse.  General  Am- 
herst carries  six  battalions  to  the  continent ;  Monckton  takes  two 
up  the  Bay  of  Fundy  ;  and  I  have  the  honour  to  command  three 
in  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence,  to  distress  the  enemy's  fishery,  and 
to  alarm  them.  We  are  very  earnest  to  hear  what  has  been 
doing  in  Europe,  or  whether  anything  has  been  done  at  all 
by  us. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

So  Sir  Charles  Hardy,  seven  ships  of  the  line  and  three  frigates, 
carrying  Wolfe  and  three  regiments — Amherst's,  Bragg's  and 
Anstruther's — parted  on  their  mission  of  spreading  the  terror  of  the 
British  arms  through  the  French  gulf  settlements.  It  was  hoped 
that  Montcalm  at  Quebec  would  be  sufficiently  alarmed  not  to 
detach  any  of  his  force  for  the  assistance  of  Abercrombie's  opponent. 
This  measure,  distasteful  as  it  was,  Wolfe  carried  out  with  great 
thoroughness.     Quebec  was  spared  for  the  present  to  the  French. 

Amherst  left  with  his  division  for  New  York,  whither  Wolfe 
sent  the  following  on  his  own  return  to  Louisbourg.  This  letter 
exhibits  the  very  intimate  relations  between  the  two  men,  as 
Wolfe  herein  undertakes  to  advise  his  chief. 

To  Major-General  Amherst. 

Louisbourg,  30^A  September,  1768. 

Dear  Sir, — Your  orders  were  carried  into  execution  as  far  as 
troops  who  were  limited  in  their  operations  by  other  powers, 


SAILS   FOR   ENGLAND  397 

could  carry  them.  I  have  made  my  report  to  General 
Abercromby,  to  which  (as  it  is  pretty  long)  I  beg  to  refer. ^  Our 
equipment  was  very  improper  for  the  business,  and  the  numbers, 
unless  the  squadron  had  gone  up  the  river,  quite  unnecessary. 
We  have  done  a  great  deal  of  mischief, — spread  the  terror  of 
His  Majesty's  arms  through  the  whole  gulf;  but  have  added 
nothing  to  the  reputation  of  them.  The  Bay  of  Gaspe  and  the 
harbour  are  both  excellent,  and  now  well  known  to  our  fleet. 
By  the  beginning  of  the  month  of  July,  I  hope  the  river  of 
Quebec  will  be  as  well  known  ;  although  the  aversion  to  that 
navigation,  and  the  apprehensions  about  it,  are  inconceivably 
great.  If  you  do  business  up  the  river,  you  must  have  small  craft 
and  a  number  of  whale-boats,  two  at  least  to  each  transport. 
Pilots  are  easily  had  for  sloops  and  schooners  ;  every  fisherman 
in  the  river  can  conduct  them  up.  If  you  had  sent  two  large 
empty  cats,'^  I  could  have  loaded  them  with  30,000  pounds'  worth 
of  the  finest  dried  cod  you  ever  saw  ;  but  you  won't  make  money 
when  it  is  in  your  power,  though  there  are  such  examples  before 
your  eyes.  The  two  regiments  are  gone  to  Halifax,  except  fifty 
or  sixty  recovering  men,  who  followed  the  squadron. 

Frontenac  is  a  great  stroke.  An  offensive,  daring  kind  of 
war  will  awe  the  Indians  and  ruin  the  French.  Block-houses, 
and  a  trembling  defensive,  encourage  the  meanest  scoundrels  to 
attack  us.  The  navy  showed  their  happy  disposition  for  plun- 
dering upon  this,  as  upon  all  former  occasions,  and  I  indulged 
them  to  the  utmost.  I  wish  you  success.  Cannonade  furiously 
before  you  attack,  and  don't  let  them  go  on  in  lines,  but  rather 
in  columns  : —  i  i  i  »  i  »  CZZD  Cela  ne  vaut  rien  pour  les 
retranchements,  Voild  Vaffaire :  ^^  ==^  =^  ^=  ==-  Mr. 
Boscawen  is  in  haste  to  get  back.  No  return  to  the  express  of 
the  surrender  of  Louisbourg.  If  you  will  attempt  to  cut  up 
New  France  by  the  roots,  I  will  come  back  with  pleasure  to 
assist.  I  wish  you  health,  and  am,  dear  Sir,  with  great  regard, 
Your  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

For  the  present  Wolfe's  work  was  done.  Boscawen  being  about 
to  sail  for  home  in  the  Namur,  Wolfe,  not  receiving  any  orders 
to  the  contrary,  offered  to  accompany  him,  leaving  his  officers  and 

1  I  also  omit  as  repetition  his  lengthy  report  to  Barrington. 

2  Catamarans,  flat-bottomed  boats. 


398    LIFE   AND   LETTERS    OF   WOLFE 

men  with  Whitmore,  the  new  Governor  of  Louisbourg,  M.  Drucour's 
successor  in  the  governorship. 

Not  then  did  Wolfe  know  that  Chatham's  intention  was  that 
he  should  remain  in  North  America,  that  he  was  already  in  the 
great  minister's  eye  as  the  man  who  was  to  carry  out  the  next  and 
final  coup  for  the  mastery  of  the  continent.  They  had  a  long 
passage,  but  it  was  enlivened  towards  the  close  by  the  Namur  and 
her  consort's  meeting  off  Land's  End  with  a  French  fleet  of  seven 
men-of-war  lately  in  the  St.  Lawrence,  homeward  boxmd  like 
themselves.  Wolfe  hoped  for  an  action  which  would  make  the 
enemy  a  prize,  but  after  a  few  shots  had  been  exchanged  the  French 
got  away  at  night.  On  the  1st  of  November  the  British  squadron 
anchored  at  St.  Helens,  and  Wolfe  rowed  across  to  Portsmouth, 
where  he  landed  on  the  Hard  that  evening. 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Wednesday  night. 
Dear  Madam, — A  messenger  is  dispatched  to  the  Admiralty 
with  an  account  of  Mr.  Boscawen's  arrival,  and  that  opportunity 
serves  me  of  letting  you  know  that  I  am  safe  ashore,  notwith- 
standing rocks  currents  and  other  mischiefs  and  perils  of  the 
sea.  Kit  Mason  is  perfectly  well  and  like  to  become  an  able 
mariner  of  which  I  beg  you  to  acquaint  his  mother.  I  am 
extremely  sorry  to  hear  that  my  father  is  not  so  well  as  I  wish 
him.     My  duty  to  him. 

I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  affectionate  son. 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 
To  Mrs.  Wolfe, 

Blackheath. 


XVII 

THE   QUEBEC   COMMAND 

On  Wolfe's  arrival  in  his  native  land  after  the  brilliant  exploit 
of  Louisboiirg  (of  which  he  was  generally  regarded  as  the  hero)  he 
at  once  wrote  to  the  Commander-in-Chief,  Lord  Ligonier,  requesting 
furlough.  He  was  anxious  to  see  his  regiment  and  his  regimental 
friends,  so,  instead  of  going  straight  up  to  London,  posted  off  to 
Salisbury.  Since  his  promotion  to  the  Colonelcy  of  the  67th 
regiment,  the  Lieutenant-Colonelcy  of  his  old  regiment,  the 
Twentieth,  passed  to  Major  Beckwith,  whose  rank  was  given  to 
Captain  Maxwell.  The  Twentieth  was  now  in  Germany,  fighting 
under  Prince  Ferdinand,  and  shortly  to  win  distinction  at  Minden. 
A  few  days  later  he  writes  to  Blackheath. 

To  HIS  Father. 

Salisbury,  Qth  November,  1768. 

Dear    Sir, — Somebody    told    me    that    you    were    seen    in 

London  within  these  few  days,  which  I  was  particularly  pleased 

to  hear,  because  at  Portsmouth  there  was  a  report  of  your  being 

out  of  order.     You  might  well  expect  that  I  should  have  been 

to  pay  my  duty  to  you  before  this  time  ;  but  it  seemed  right  to 

wait  for  the  Marshal's  leave  to  go  to  town,  and  nowhere  so 

properly  as  at  the  regiment.     His  Excellency  hath  not  done  me 

the  honour  to  answer  my  letter  yet,  and  I  cannot  stir  till  he 

does ;  so  I  must  content  myself  with  wishing  you  and  my  mother 

all  imaginable  good. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc. 

Jam:  Wolfe. 

The  expected  leave  came  a  few  days  later ;  he  was  once  more  at 
Blackheath,  revelling  for  a  brief  interval  in  the  open  air  of  the 
park  and  in  his  dogs.  His  aged  father  had  now  only  a  few  months 
to  live. 

To  Major  Walter  Wolfe. 

Blackheath,  VJth  November ,  1758. 
Dear  Sir, — I  wish  I  could  say  that  my  health  was    such 
as  a  soldier  should  have.     Long  passages  and  foggy  weather  have 

399 


400    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

left  their  natural  effects  upon  me.  The  people  here  say  I  look 
well.  No  care  shall  be  wanting  to  get  ready  for  the  next 
campaign.  They  can  propose  no  service  to  me  that  I  shall 
refuse  to  undertake,  unless  where  capacity  is  short  of  the  task. 
We  met  a  squadron  of  homeward-bound  French  men-of-war,  and 
did  our  utmost  to  engage  them,  though  with  inferior  force. 
Their  destruction  would  almost  have  annihilated  the  French 
navy.  My  father  looks  well,  and  is  well  for  the  time  of  life ;  and 
my  mother  does  not  complain.  I  hope  you  continue  to  enjoy  a 
share  of  health.  My  father  tells  me  that  he  has  added  some- 
thing to  my  cousin  Goldsmith's  little  income :  his  liberality 
towards  such  of  our  relations  as  need  it  is  most  commendable.  If 
fortune  smile  upon  us,  I  shall  endeavour  to  follow  his  example. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

But  London  claimed  him.  Although  his  name  was  not 
mentioned  in  the  Parliamentary  vote  of  thanks  tendered  to  Boscawen 
and  Amherst,  he  being  a  subordinate  officer,  yet  in  military  and 
political  circles  he  was  credited  with  the  lion's  share  of  the  achieve- 
ment. He  soon  learnt,  however,  that  Pitt  was  rather  disconcerted 
at  his  sudden  return  with  Boscawen.  On  receiving  the  report  of 
the  fall  of  Louisbourg,  orders  had  been  sent  to  the  young  Brigadier 
to  remain  on  the  other  side  of  the  Atlantic,  with  a  view  to  his 
assumption  of  chief  command  of  Pitt's  next  venture.  These  orders 
had  not  arrived  when  Wolfe  left.  When  the  Minister's  expectations 
had  been  explained  to  him  after  a  dinner  with  some  military 
friends,  including  Sackville,  at  White's  Club,  he  wrote  at  once. 

To  THE  Right  Honorable  William  Pitt. 

St.  James  St.,  Nov.  22,  1758. 

Sir, — Since  my  arrival  in  town,  I  have  been  told  that  your 
intentions  were  to  have  continued  me  upon  the  service  in  America. 
The  condition  of  my  health,  and  other  circumstances,  made  me 
desire  to  return  at  the  end  of  the  campaign ;  and  by  what  my 
Lord  Ligonier  did  me  the  honour  to  say,  I  imderstood  it  was  to 
be  so.     General  Amherst  saw  it  in  the  same  light. 

I  take  the  freedom  to  acquaint  you  that  I  have  no  objection 
to  serving  in  America,  and  particularly  in  the  river  St.  Lawrence, 
if  any  operations  are  to  be  carried  on  there.  The  favour  I  ask 
is  only  to  be  allowed  a  sufficient  time  to  repair  the  injury  done 


THE   HAMPSHIRE   REGIMENT     401 

to  my  constitution  by  the  long  confinement  at  sea,  that  I  may 
be  the  better  able  to  go  through  the  business  of  the  next 
summer. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  with  the  utmost  respect, 

Sir,  you  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

This  letter  cleared  the  air,  and  it  also  confirmed  the  great 
minister  in  his  original  intentions  to  "  defy  the  claims  of  seniority  " 
in  the  impending  campaign.  "  Had  he  consulted  those  claims 
only,"  says  Stanhope,  "  — had  he,  like  many  Ministers  before  and 
after  him,  thought  the  Army  List  an  unerring  guide, — he  might 
probably  have  sent  to  Canada  a  veteran  experienced  and  brave,  but 
no  longer  quick  and  active,  and  might  perhaps  have  received  in 
return  a  most  eloquent  and  conclusive  apology  for  being  beaten ; 
or  for  standing  still ! ""  When  he  wrote  the  letter  Wolfe  might 
easily  have  supposed  he  would  serve  with  Amherst,  then  in 
America;  when  he  received  it  Pitfs  mind  was  made  up  to  give 
the  leadership  of  the  new  project  to  Wolfe. 

Pitt  was  confirmed  in  his  choice  by  the  opinion  which  the 
officers  who  had  just  served  with  Wolfe  in  America  entertained  of 
him.  Not  long  since  a  document  came  to  light  amongst  the 
Colonial  Archives  in  which  three  of  the  most  able  of  the  colonels 
serving  there  applied  to  Pitt  to  retain  Brigadier  Wolfe  as  com- 
mander in  the  St.  Lawrence.  A  plan  of  attack  by  that  river  was 
outlined,  together  with  the  forces  necessary.  Amherst  being  now 
Commander-in-Chief  on  the  continent,  the  signatories  to  the  letter 
strongly  recommended  Wolfe  for  the  command.^ 

That  same  evening,  in  St.  James's  street,  Wolfe  began  an  epistle 
to  Rickson,  which,  however,  he  did  not  finish  then,  but  carried  it 
with  him  on  the  morrow,  when  he  set  out  to  rejoin  his  regiment  at 
Salisbury. 

What  he  had  accomplished  with  the  20th,  Wolfe  had  already 
begun  to  do  with  the  new  regiment  (the  67th)  he  had  raised,  and 
of  which  he  was  the  first  Colonel.  Sir  James  Campbell,  who  ten 
years  later  was  in  command  of  the  corps,  marched  them  before 
Count  Butterlin,  the  Russian  General  at  Minorca,  who  expressed 
himself  astonished  at  their  appearance  and  discipline,  as  well  as 
"the  precision  and  rapidity  with  which  they  performed  their 
evolutions."  "  The  regiment,"  Campbell  observes,  "  was  un- 
doubtedly in  a  high  state  of  discipline ;  but  the  only  merit  which 

1  S.  P.,  Colonial  (America  and  West  Indies)  76,  Dec.  29, 1758. 

D  D 


402    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

on  that  account  was  due  to  me  was  the  attention  and  strictness 
with  which  I  followed  the  system  which  had  been  introduced  by  its 
former  colonel,  the  hero  of  Quebec."  ^ 

To  Colonel  Rickson.^ 

Salisbury,  1*^  December,  1758. 

My  dear  Friend, — Your  letter,  dated  in  September,  as  well 
as  the  last  you  did  me  the  favour  to  write,  are  both  received,  and 
with  the  greatest  satisfaction.  I  do  not  reckon  that  we  have 
been  fortunate  this  year  in  America.  Our  force  was  so  superior 
to  the  enemy's  that  we  might  hope  for  greater  success ;  but  it 
pleased  the  Disposer  of  all  things  to  check  our  presumption, 
by  permitting  Mr.  Abercromby  to  hurry  on  the  precipitate 
attack  of  Ticonderoga,  in  which  he  failed  with  loss.  By  the 
situation  of  that  fort,  by  the  superiority  of  our  naval  force 
there,  and  by  the  strength  of  our  army,  which  could  bear  to  be 
weakened  by  detachments,  it  seems  to  me  to  have  been  no  very 
difficult  matter  to  have  obliged  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  to 
have  laid  down  his  arms,  and,  consequently,  to  have  given  up  all 
Canada.  In  another  circumstance,  too,  we  may  be  reckoned 
unlucky.  The  squadron  of  men-of-war,  under  De  Chaffrueil, 
failed  in  their  attempt  to  get  into  the  harbour  of  Louisbourg, 
where  inevitably  they  would  have  shared  the  fate  of  those  that 
did,  which  must  have  given  an  irretrievable  blow  to  the  marine 
of  France,  and  deliver  Quebec  into  our  hands,  if  we  chose  to  go 
up  and  demand  it. 

Amongst  ourselves   be   it   said,  that   our  attempt  to   land 
where  we  did  was  rash  and  injudicious,  our  success  unexpected 

1  Memoirs  of  Sir  James  Campbell  of  Ardkinglass. 

2  Rickson  afterwards  settled  in  Scotland,  where  he  was  highly  esteemed. 
In  1763  he  was  appointed  hy  Government  to  superintend  the  formation  of 
roads  through  the  shires  of  Dumfries^  Galloway,  and  Wigton,  a  duty  which 
he  performed  with  remarkable  industry  and  talent.  In  1767  he  married 
Euphemia,  daughter  of  Dr.  Bremner  of  Edinburgh,  and  was  promoted  to  the 
office  of  Quartermaster-General  of  North  Britain,  though  only  with  the  rank 
of  Lieutenant-Colonel.  The  Duke  of  Queensberry  was  endeavouring  to 
obtain  a  Colonel's  commission  for  him,  and  the  matter  was  nearly  settled, 
when  this  active  and  amiable  officer  was  attacked  with  paralysis,  and  died 
without  issue  at  Broughton,  near  Edinburgh,  on  the  19th  July,  1770.  His 
remains  were  interred  in  the  churchyard  at  Restalrig,  where  a  handsome 
tomb  was  erected  by  his  widow,  who  survived  him  many  years.  The  letters 
addressed  to  him  by  Wolfe  were  discovered  in  the  year  1849  in  an  old  military 
chest  supposed  to  contain  only  army  reports  and  useless  documents.  The 
letters  were  presented  by  their  then  owner,  a  distant  connection  of  Ricksou's, 
to  the  Society  of  Antiquaries  of  Scotland,  in  whose  museum  at  Edinburgh 
they  now  are.     See  Buchanan's  Glasgow,  Past  and  Present. 


HIS   BODILY  AILMENTS  403 

(by  me)  and  undeserved.     There  was  no  prodigious  exertion  of 
courage  in  the  affair ;   an  officer  and  thirty  men  would  have 
made  it  impossible  to  get  ashore  where  we  did.    Our  proceedings 
in  other  respects  are  as  slow  and  tedious^  as  this  undertaking 
was  ill-advised  and  desperate  ;  but  this  for  your  private  informa- 
tion only.     We   lost   time  at   the  siege,  still   more   after  the 
siege,  and   blundered   from  the   beginning  to  the  end   of  the 
campaign.     My  Lord  Howe's  death  (who  was  truly  a  great  man) 
left  the  army  upon  the  Continent  without  life  or  vigour.     This 
defeat    at    Ticonderoga    seemed    to   stupify   us   that   were   at 
Louisbourg ;  if  we  had  taken  the  first  hint  of  that  repulse,  and 
sent   early  and   powerful   succours,  things   would   have   taken, 
perhaps,    a   different   turn    in   those   parts   before   the   end   of 
October.     I  expect  every  day  to  hear  that  some  fresh  attempts 
have  been  made  at  Ticonderoga,  and  I  can't  flatter  myself  that 
they  have  succeeded,  not  from  any  high  idea  of  the  Marquis  de 
Montcalm's  abilities,  but  from  the  very  poor  opinion  of  our  own. 
You   have   obliged   me  much   with   this   little  sketch    of  that 
important  spot ;  till  now  I  have  been  ill-acquainted  with   it. 
Bradstreet's  coup  was  masterly.     He   is   a   very  extraordinary 
man  ;  and  if  such  an  excellent  officer  as  the  late  Lord  Howe  had 
the  use  of  Bradstreet's  battue  knowledge,  it  would  turn  to  a  good 
public  account. 

When  I  went  from  hence.  Lord  Ligonier  told  me  that  I  was 
to  return  at  the  end  of  the  campaign ;  but  I  have  learned  since 
I  came  home  that  an  order  is  gone  to  keep  me  there;  and  I 
have  this  day  signified  to  Mr.  Pitt  that  he  may  dispose  of  my 
slight  carcass  as  he  pleases,  and  that  I  am  ready  for  any  under- 
taking within  the  reach  and  compass  of  my  skill  and  cunning. 
I  am  in  a  very  bad  condition  both  with  the  gravel  and  rheumatism, 
but  I  had  much  rather  die  than  decline  any  kind  of  service  that 
offers.  If  I  followed  my  own  taste,  it  would  lead  me  into 
Germany;  and  if  my  poor  talent  was  consulted,  they  would 
place  me  in  the  cavalry,  because  nature  has  given  me  good  eyes, 
and  a  warmth  of  temper  to  follow  the  first  impressions.  How- 
ever, it  is  not  our  part  to  choose,  but  to  obey.  My  opinion  is, 
that  I  shall  join  the  army  in  America,  where,  if  fortune  favours 
our  force  and  best  endeavours,  we  may  hope  to  triumph. 

^  *'  The  engineer  who  directed  the  approaches  [at  Louisbourg]  was  a  very 
formal  man^  of  whose  slowness  Wolfe  did  not  scruple  greatly  to  complain. 
'My  maxim/  said  the  engineer^  'is  slow  and  sure.'  'And  mine,'  instantly 
replied  Wolfe, '  is  quick  and  sure — dk  much  better  maxim  ! ' " — Quarterly  Review, 
vol.  185,  p.  104. 

D  D  2 


404    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

I  have  said  more  than  enough  of  myself.  It  is  time  to  turn 
a  little  to  your  affairs.  Nothing  more  unjust  than  the  great 
rank  lately  thrown  away  upon  little  men,  and  the  good  servants 
of  the  state  neglected.  Not  content  with  frequent  solicitations 
in  your  behalf,  I  writ  a  letter  just  before  I  embarked,  putting 
my  Lord  George  Sackville  in  mind  of  you,  and  requesting  his 
protection ;  his  great  business,  or  greater  partialities,  has  made 
him  overlook  your  just  pretensions.  If  you  come  to  town  in 
January,  I  shall  be  there,  and  will  do  you  all  the  service  I  am 
able,  but  Lord  Ligonier  seems  particularly  determined  not  to 
lay  the  weight  of  any  one  obligation  on  me ;  so  you  may  hold 
my  good  inclination  in  higher  value  than  my  power  to  assist. 
You  have  my  best  wishes,  and  I  am,  truly, 
My  dear  friend. 

Your  faithful  and  obedient  servant, 

James  Wolfe. 

To  a  letter  of  congratulation  from  one  of  the  captains  of  the 
20th,  then  on  the  Continent,  he  wrote — 

To  Captain  Parr. 

Salisbury,  Qth  December ,  1768. 
Dear  Parr, — Your  remembrance  and  congratulations  upon 
my  return  to  Europe  are  most  acceptable,  and  I  shall  always  set 
a  value  upon  your  friendship  and  good  opinion.  It  gives  me  the 
utmost  satisfaction  to  hear  of  the  good  behaviour  of  your 
regiment,  and  I  don't  at  all  doubt  but  they  will  be  still  more 
distinguished  when  they  are  more  tried.  They  are  led  by  the 
same  captains  who  have  assisted  in  establishing  the  sound 
discipline  that  prevails  amongst  you ;  and  there  is  no  reason  to 
suppose  other  than  the  natural  effects  whenever  it  comes  to  the 
proof.  My  people,  I  find,  are  much  out  of  humour  with  your 
chief. ^  I  hope  you  have  no  such  temper  amongst  you.  It  is  my 
fortune  to  be  cursed  with  American  service,  yours  to  serve  in  an 
army  commanded  by  a  great  and  able  Prince,  where  I  would  have 
been  if  my  choice  and  inclinations  had  been  consulted.  Our  old 
comrade,  Howe,^  is  at  the  best  trained  battalion  in  all  America ; 
and  his  conduct  in  the  course  of  the  last  campaign  corresponded 
entirely  with  the  opinion  we  had  all  entertained  of  him.     His 

^  Lord  George  Sackville,  the  Duke  of  Marlborough's  successor  as  Com- 
mander-in-Chief in  Germany. 

2  Sir  Willkim,  afterwards  Lord  Howe,  afterwards  to  surrender  at  Yorktown. 


REPAIRS   TO   BATH  405 

Majesty  has  not  a  better  soldier  in  those  parts, — modest,  diligent, 
and  valiant.  His  brother  was  a  great  man ;  this  country  has 
produced  nothing  like  him  in  my  time;  his  death  cannot  be 
enough  lamented.  You  must  continue  to  be  upon  good  terms 
with  the  Hanoverian  Guards  ;  they  deserve  your  esteem.  Your 
quarters  are  not,  I  believe,  amongst  the  best,  nor,  I  fear,  amongst 
the  cheapest. 

The  first  news  that  I  heard  at  Portsmouth  was  the  death  of 
M''Dowall ;  ^  what  a  loss  was  there !  I  have  hardly  ever  known 
a  better  Foot  officer,  or  a  better  man, — clear,  firm,  resolute,  and 
cool.  My  health  is  mightily  impaired  by  the  long  confinement 
at  sea.  I  am  going  directly  to  the  Bath,  to  refit  for  another 
campaign.  We  shall  look,  I  imagine,  at  the  famous  post  at 
Ticonderoga,  where  Mr.  Abercromby,  by  a  little  soldiership  and 
a  little  patience,  might,  I  think,  have  put  an  end  to  the  war  in 
America.  General  Amherst  thought  the  entrenchments  so  im- 
proved as  to  require  more  ceremony  in  the  second  attack  than 
the  season  would  allow  of.  You  will  always  have  my  best  wishes. 
I  asked  immediately, — Did  Kingsley's  come  into  action  ?  How 
did  they  behave  ?  The  answer  was, — There  is  no  doubt  that 
they  would  have  done  well,  but  there  was  no  enemy  to  try  them. 
My  compliments  to  the  corps.  I  hope  Grey  has  his  health,  and 
Carleton.^     Fare  ye  well. 

I  am,  dear  Parr, 
Your  faithful  and  obedient  servant, 

J.  W. 
To  Captain  Pabr, 

Of  the  20th  Regiment,  at  MunsteVj  Westphalia, 

On  the  day  after  writing  this  letter  the  men  were  ordered  out 
and  their  commander  inspected  them  for  the  last  time.  He  then 
bade  them  farewell,  hoping  they  would  conduct  themselves  in  his 
absence  so  as  reflect  honour  upon  their  officers  and  credit  upon 
themselves.  It  was  seen  then  that  he  was  far  from  well ;  his  pallor 
was  particularly  noted,  and  a  lack  of  the  usual  briskness  in  his  gait. 
That  afternoon  he  engaged  a  post-chaise  to  Bath.^     From  lodgings 

1  Alexander  McDowell,  Captain  of  the  Grenadier  Company  of  the  20th. 

2  Thomas,  younger  brother  of  Lieut. -Colonel  Guy  Carleton. 

3  It  may  be  as  well  to  correct  the  impression  which  prevails  in  some 
quarters  concerning  Wolfe's  residence  at  Bath.  The  house  in  Trim  Street, 
where  his  parents  had  stayed  at  their  last  visit,  was  only  taken  for  a  season, 
and  not  yet  purchased. 


406     LIFE   AND   LETTERS    OF   WOLFE 

in  Queen  Square,  then  on  the  very  outskirts  of  the  town,  he  wrote 
two  days  later — 

To  HIS  Father. 

Bath  J  Qth  December  ^  1758. 
Dear  Sir, — If  I  had  not  been  scrambling  over  the  country, 
you  should,  by  this  time,  have  known  my  state  and  condition. 
A  man  can't  write  well  till  he  gets  into  his  lodgings ;  nor  is  one 
much  inclined  to  write  with  self  only  for  a  subject.  I  find  a  few 
acquaintances,  but  no  friends  since  George  Warde  went  away. 
This  is  my  third  day  at  Bath.  My  continuance  here  will  be  no 
longer  than  is  pleasant,  and  as  long  as  it  is  either  useful  or  con- 
venient. I  have  got  in  the  square,  to  be  more  at  leisure,  more 
in  the  air,  and  nearer  the  country.  The  women  are  not  remark- 
able, nor  the  men  neither ;  however,  a  man  must  be  very  hard  to 
please  if  he  does  not  find  some  that  will  suit  him.  Cheerfulness 
and  good  humour  recommend  as  strongly  to  some  tempers  as 
qualities  of  a  stronger  cast.  There  are  a  number  of  people  that 
inquire  after  you  and  my  mother,  and  some  that  wish  you  well 
wherever  you  are.    I  hope  health  and  tranquility  will  be  with  you. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Perhaps  it  was  just  after  penning  the  foregoing  that  Wolfe''s 
interest  in  his  neighbours  at  Bath  was  quickened  by  meeting  again 
with  the  young  lady  who  had  so  captured  his  fancy  a  year  before. 
He  was  now  a  hero  by  general  consent,  and  especially  so  in 
the  eyes  of  the  fair  sex.  Miss  Lowther  was  at  Bath  with  her 
mother,  the  widow  of  Robert  Lowther,  Esq.,  formerly  Governor  of 
Barbados,  and  perhaps  accompanied  by  her  brother.  Sir  James. 
Our  hero  must  have  thrown  himself  into  the  courting  of  this  lady 
with  his  usual  ardour,  but  the  siege  was  suddenly  interrupted  by  a 
message  from  the  Secretary  of  State  summoning  the  young  soldier 
to  Hayes.  He  went,  and  there  he  received  from  Pitt  the  command 
of  the  expedition  to  Quebec,  and  a  full  statement  of  the  minister^'s 
intentions.  From  Hayes  he  rode  over  to  Blackheath,  whence  he 
wrote  his  friend,  Warde,  now  Lieutenant-Colonel,  in  very  guarded 
terms — 

To  Colonel  George  Warde. 

Blackheath,  20th  December,  1758. 
My  dear  Colonel, — I  need  not  ask  you  if  you  desire  to 
serve      I  know  your  inclinations  in  that  respect ;  but  let  me 


COLONEL   WILLIAM    RICKSON 

From  a  miniature  in  the  possession  of  Mrs.  Robertson 
of  Rosebank,  Partick 


SQUERRYES   COUllT,    WESTERHAM 


EPISTLE   TO   PITT  407 

know  if  I  may  mention  you  for  distant,  difficult,  and  disagreeable 
service,  such  as  requires  all  your  spirit  and  abilities.  Tis  not 
the  Indies,  which  is  as  much  as  I  can  say  directly ;  but  if  the 
employment  of  Adjutant-General,  or  perhaps  of  Quartermaster- 
General  to  a  very  hazardous  enterprise  be  to  your  taste,  there 
are  people  who  would  be  extremely  glad  of  your  assistance. 
There  is  no  immediate  advantage  arising  from  it.  That  of 
being  useful  to  the  public  at  the  expense  of  your  health  and 
constitution,  is  an  argument  that  cannot  be  strongly  urged. 
Write  to  me  by  return  of  post,  and  send  your  letter  to  the  Bath, 
where  it  will  find  me. 

I  am  ever  your 

Faithful  friend, 

J.  Wolfe. 

On  the  21st  he  was  back  again  at  Bath  to  renew  his  courtship, 
and  to  set  forth  his  views  for  the  minister'*s  benefit,  which  he  did 
three  days  later — 

To  THE  Right  Hon.  William  Pitt. 

Bath,  December  24,  1758. 
Sir, — In  a  packet  of  letters  from  North  America,  there  are 
two  which  contain  some  interesting  circumstances,  as  they  throw 
a  light  upon  the  state  of  men's  minds  in  those  parts.  They  are 
a  confirmation  to  me  of  the  thorough  aversion  conceived  by  the 
marine  of  this  country  against  navigating  in  the  river  St. 
Lawrence.  The  letters  are  from  two  gentlemen  recommended 
to  act  as  Assistant  Quartermasters-General,^  and  do  in  some 
measure  point  out  the  hardy,  active  disposition  of  the  men. 
I  will  add,  from  my  own  knowledge,  that  the  second  naval 
officer  2  in  command  there  is  vastly  unequal  to  the  weight  of 
business ;  and  it  is  of  the  first  importance  to  the  country  that  it 
doth  not  fall  into  such  hands.  Mr.  Caldwell  in  autumn  proposed 
to  attempt  bringing  off  the  pilots  from  the  Isle  aux  Coudres,  after 
the  French  fleet  came  down,  or  was  supposed  to  be  come  down 
the  river.  The  seeming  danger  of  the  enterprise,  and  other 
causes,  put  a  stop  to  so  great  an  undertaking. 

1  Lieutenants  Caldwell  and  Leslie,  then  at  Louisbourg. — Chatham  Corre- 
spondence, vol.  i.  pp.  381-4.  A  letter  from  Leslie  concerning  the  battle  of 
Quebec  has  recently  come  to  light.     See  Appendix. 

?  Rear- Admiral  Durell,  who  afterwards  justified  Wolfe's  poor  opinion 
of  him. 


408    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

What  Caldwell  observes  in  regards  to  the  fleet's  anchoring  at 
the  Isle  Bic  is  certainly  very  proper.  A  squadron  of  eight  or 
ten  sail  stationed  there,  in  the  earliest  opening  of  the  river  would 
effectually  prevent  all  relief ;  and  it  would  be  a  very  easy  thing 
for  the  remainder  of  that  squadron  to  push  a  frigate  or  two,  and 
as  many  sloops,  up  the  river,  even  as  high  as  the  Isle  of  Orleans, 
with  proper  people  on  board  to  acquire  a  fertain  knowledge  of 
the  navigation,  in  readiness  to  pilot  such  men-of-war  and  trans- 
ports as  the  commanders  should  think  fit  to  send  up,  after  the 
junction  of  the  whole  fleet  at  Isle  Bic.  Nor  does  there  appear 
any  great  risk  in  detatching  the  North  American  squadron  to 
that  station,  as  it  is  hardly  probable  that  a  force  equal  to  that 
squadron  could  be  sent  from  Europe  to  force  their  way  up  to 
Quebec,  because  it  is  a  hundred  to  one  if  such  a  fleet  keeps 
together  in  that  early  season ;  and  if  they  were  together,  it  is 
next  to  a  certainty  that  they  would  be  in  a  very  poor  condition 
for  action.  Besides,  it  would  effectually  answer  our  purpose  to 
engage  a  French  squadron  in  that  river,  even  with  the  superiority 
of  a  ship  or  two  on  their  side,  seeing  that  they  must  be  shattered 
in  the  engagement,  and  in  the  end  destroyed. 

If  the  enemy  cannot  pass  the  squadron  stationed  in  the  river, 
and  push  up  to  Quebec,  a  few  ships  of  war  and  frigates  would  do 
to  convoy  the  transports  from  the  Isle  Bic  to  Quebec,  and  to 
assist  in  the  operations  of  the  campaign  ;  and,  in  this  case,  the 
gross  of  the  fleet  remaining  at  the  Isle  Bic  is  at  hand  to  prevent 
any  attempt  upon  Louisbourg  or  Halifax ;  whereas,  if  the  whole 
went  up  to  Quebec,  intelligence  would  be  long  in  getting  to 
them,  and  their  return  in  proportion.  You  must  excuse  the 
freedom  I  have  taken,  both  in  writing  and  sending  the  enclosed 
papers.  If  you  see  one  useful  hint  in  either,  my  intent  is  fully 
answered ;  if  not,  I  beg  you  will  burn  them  without  any  further 
notice. 

I  beg  to  be,  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

There  is  an  interesting  letter  extant  from  Lord  Heathfleld 
(then  Colonel  Elliott),  who  was  at  this  time  at  Bath,  and  who  was  a 
mutual  friend  of  both  Wolfe  and  George  Warde,  but  especially  of 
the  latter.  To  Elliott  Warde  wrote  telling  him  that  he  had 
received  an  intimation  from  Wolfe  of  the  expedition  and  an  offer 
to  accompany  him  in  it,  and  that  he  had  decided  to  accept,  but 


INVITATION   TO   WARDE  409 

feared  official  permission  would  be  withheld.  In  his  reply  Elliott, 
whose  attitude  towards  the  brilliant  officer,  his  junior  in  years,  was 
probably  shared  by  most  of  the  aristocratic  guards  and  cavalrymen 
of  the  day  (Townshend  was  an  example)  replies — 

The  subject  is  not  unexpected  by  me,  as  I  knew  Wolfe's 
opinion,  though  he  has  not  opened  his  lips  to  me  about  any 
particular  service.  He  will  certainly  command,  and  by  his  own 
account  I  should  imagine  him  well  prepared ;  which  will,  of 
course,  make  the  campaign  agreeable  to  his  friends,  and  no 
doubt  very  instructive.  At  all  events,  'tis  better  than  Scotch 
quarters  or  an  ill-digested  project  on  the  coast  of  France. 

To  Warde  thus  writes  Wolfe  the  day  after  Christmas — 

To  Colonel  George  Warde. 

Bath,  December  26th,  1758. 
My  dear  Friend, — I  have  told  the  leading  men  that  if  they 
charge  a  young  soldier  with  weighty  matters  they  must  give  him 
the  best  assistance.  I  know  none  better  than  those  I  took  the 
freedom  to  mention,  and  if  there  be  any  obstacles  on  the  side  of 
Government  I  shall  desire  to  be  excused  from  taking  the  first 
part.  Another  circumstance  might  oblige  me  to  decline  these 
dangerous  honours,  viz.  any  situation  of  affairs  that  might  make 
it  disagreeable  for  you  and  another  friend  to  engage  in  this 
business  with  me.  The  readiness  you  express  encourages  me  to 
hope  that  our  united  efforts  may  at  least  be  useful.  Nothing 
shall  be  pressed  upon  you,  although  I  know  of  nothing  that  you 
need  decline.  We  shall  meet  in  London  towards  the  middle  of 
next  week,  and  talk  the  matter  over ;  till  then  I  bid  you 
farewell. 

I  am,  as  ever,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

Lieut. -Colonel  Warde  did  not  accompany  the  expedition  to 
Quebec.  Sent  instead  to  Germany,  he  distinguished  himself  in 
various  engagements  during  the  remainder  of  the  war.  He  was 
an  excellent  regimental  officer,  and  brought  the  4th  Dragoons  to  so 
high  a  state  of  discipline  that  George  III,  whenever  he  reviewed 
the  corps,  invariably  complimented  their  Lieut. -Colonel.  In  1773 
he  was  promoted  to  the  colonelcy  of  the  14th  Dragoons,  subse- 
quently was  colonel  of  the  4th  Dragoon  Guards,  and  passed  through 


410    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

the  several  grades  to  the  ranks  of  General.  In  1792  he  was 
appointed  Commander  of  the  Forces  in  Ireland,  where  he  devoted 
much  of  his  attention  to  bringing  the  cavalry  into  a  perfect  condi- 
tion for  active  service.  General  Warde  was  considered  the  first 
cavalry  officer  of  his  time,  and  introduced  what  is  known  as  the 
Wardonian  system  of  discipline.  He  disliked  slow  movements,  and 
when  seventy  years  of  age,  frequently  led  his  men  across  the 
country,  over  hedges  and  ditches,  to  the  great  marvel  of  spectators. 
After  losing  her  husband  and  her  son,  Mrs.  Wolfe  found  in 
General  Warde  a  faithful  friend  and  sound  adviser;  and  appointed 
him  her  principal  executor.  He  died,  unmarried,  on  the  11th 
of  March,  1803,  and  was  interred  at  St.  Mary's  Abchurch, 
London.^ 

Besides  Warde,  the  newly-appointed  commander  also  wrote  to 
several  other  of  his  friends,  as  he  particularly  desired,  he  said,  to 
have  the  power  of  choosing  his  own  staff.  We  have  seen  how  he 
wished  Carleton  to  accompany  him  to  Louisbourg,  and  how  the 
King  had  drawn  his  pen  through  that  officer's  name.  He  now 
proposed  that  Carleton  accompany  him  as  Quartermaster- General. 
But  the  King  had  not  so  ill  a  memory  as  to  forget  Carleton's  indis- 
creet allusion  to  his  beloved  Hanoverians.  On  the  12th  of  January 
Wolfe's  commission  as  Major-General  was  signed.^  Soon  afterwards 
he  drew  up  the  names  of  his  chosen  officers  and  submitted  them  to 
Pitt  and  Lord  Ligonier.  The  list  included  Colonel  Carleton.  Once 
again,  the  inveterate  old  monarch  promptly  drew  his  pen  through 
the  name,  and  refused  to  sign  his  commission.  In  the  royal  closet 
Ligonier  twice  represented  that  it  was  the  Minister's  express  wish. 
But  to  no  purpose,  until  Pitt,  insisting  on  a  third  attempt,  added, 

1  ''  ^  In  his  seventy-eighth  year,  in  the  literal  as  well  as  the  titular  sense 
of  the  words,  the  Right  Honourable  General  Warde,  of  inviolable,  disinterested 
integrity,  public  and  private.  Colonel  of  the  4th  Dragoon  Guards,  whose 
benefactions  were  scarcely  less  secret  than  extensive.'  {Gentleman's  Magazine, 
vol.  Ixxiii.  p.  292.)"— Wright,  p.  476. 

2  '^The  original  of  Wolfe's  commission  as  Major-General,  etc.,  dated 
'January  12,  1759,'  is  not  in  Lieutenant-Colonel  Warde's  possession. 
Wright  thinks  it  was  sent  to  the  War  Office  by  Mrs.  Wolfe,  and  never  re- 
turned to  her.  It  appears  that  in  making  out  the  warrant  for  the  payment  of 
the  staff  employed  in  the  expedition  to  Quebec,  which,  by  the  way,  was  not 
till  February  1761,  no  record  of  Wolfe's  appointments  could  be  traced  in 
either  the  Secretary  of  State's  or  the  War  Office.  The  informality  is  stated 
to  have  arisen  from  Mr.  Pitt's  having  delivered  the  commission  to  Wolfe 
before  registering  it  in  his  own  department,  and  to  Wolfe's  having  omitted  to 
enter  it  at  the  War  Office.  (Letter  to  Mrs.  Wolfe  from  her  agent,  Mr. 
Thomas  Fisher,  dated  ^Axe  Yard,  Westminster,  19th  February,  1761.' 
Extant  at  Squerryes  Court.)  "—Wright. 


GENERAL   GEORGE   WARDE 
From  the  portrait  hy  Opie  at  Squerin/es  Court 


NEED   OF   FUNDS  411 

"  And  tell  his  Majesty  likewise,  that  in  order  to  render  any  General 
completely  responsible  for  his  conduct,  he  should  be  made,  as  far  as 
possible,  inexcusable,  if  he  should  fail ;  and  that,  consequently, 
whatever  an  officer  entrusted  with  a  service  of  confidence  re- 
quests should  be  complied  with."  The  King  signed  Carleton's 
commission.^ 

There  was  still  an  awkward  predicament  awaiting  the  new 
Commander-in-Chief  of  the  expedition  against  Quebec.  The  accept- 
ance of  such  rank  and  duties  involved  expenses  which  he  was  ill 
able  to  afford.  The  honours  awarded  him  were  brevet  honours. 
In  England  he  was  still  only  Colonel  Wolfe,  which  did  not  carry 
much  monetary  reward.  In  an  age  when  every  backstairs  courtier 
could  amass  huge  wealth,  £^  a  day  was  considered  adequate  pay 
for  a  major-general  of  the  army.  The  pay  of  a  Commander-in-Chief 
(such  as  Amherst)  was  d^lO  a  day,  yet  although  now  Amherst  was 
in  practice  to  play  second  fiddle  to  Wolfe  in  North  America,  yet 
Wolfe  was  regarded  as  nominally  serving  imder  that  general. 
There  existed,  however,  a  precedent  for  granting  a  special  sum  for 
contingencies  when  any  officer  was  appointed  to  lead  an  expedition. 
Aware  of  this,  Wolfe  sought  Lord  Barrington,  the  Secretary  at 
War,  and  explained  that  what  he  demanded  was  for  a  public,  not 
a  private,  purpose.  "  He  asked  nothing  for  himself,**'  he  said, 
according  to  Barrington,  "  that  he  had  no  money  himself,  but  he 
could  borrow  some  of  his  father  so  that  he  should  not  be  distressed  ; 
that  perhaps  I  should  not  think  it  unreasonable,  however,  to  allow 
him  some  public  money  to  defray  a  necessary  public  expense.  His 
modesty  touched  me ;  I  acknowledged  the  equity  of  what  he  said, 
and  procured  a  warrant  signed  by  the  late  King  for  £500.  With 
this  sum  Mr.  Wolfe  declared  himself  perfectly  satisfied.  How- 
ever, I  told  him  that  if  he  should  be  obliged  to  expend  a  still 
larger  sum,  over  and  above  his  pay,  I  would  move  the  King  to 
allow  it.'' 

In  this  instance  Wolfe's  arguments  overleapt  the  vexatious 
official  barrier.  But  he  was  not  so  successful  in  other  requests. 
Political  patronage,  as  represented  by  Pitt's  colleague,  the  Duke  of 
Newcastle,  was  aghast  at  the  idea  of  turning  all  these  captains, 
colonels  and  majors  into  colonels,  generals,  and  major-generals 
without  patronage  being  consulted,  and  merely  on  account  of 
merit.  So  in  this  point  the  Minister  yielded,  and  all  these  officers 
had  merely  local  rank. 

1  This  rests  on  the  authority  of  Wood,  the  Under-Secretary  of  State. 


412    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  Major  Alexander  Murray.^ 

London^  January  28,  1759. 

Dear  Murray, — I  wish  it  was  as  much  in  my  power  to  assist 
you  as  I  am  inchned  to  do,  and  as  I  know  you  deserve.  In 
speaking  of  the  transactions  of  our  short  campaign,  it  has 
fallen  in  my  way  sometimes  to  do  you  justice ;  the  consequence 
of  which  is,  that  you  are  to  command  a  little  battalion  of 
Grenadiers,  with  the  rank  of  Lieutenant-Colonel  in  America. 
This  is  an  honour  and  a  distinction  leading  to  more  solid 
advantages,  for  which  the  best  foundation  is  laid ;  and  if  for- 
tune favour  our  good  inclinations  and  our  united  efforts,  it 
shall  be  confirmed  to  you  as  you  would  wish.  Boscawen  has 
been  pushing  for  Mr.  Hussey,  and  has  such  immoderate  weight 
that  I  consider  he  will  succeed.  I  have  spoke  to  the  Marshal 
upon  it,  and  begged  he  would  reflect  and  consider  how  mortify- 
ing a  circumstance  this  must  be  to  a  man  of  honour  and  service, 
older  in  rank  and  experience  than  the  gentleman  in  question. 
Such  a  torrent  of  family  interest,  and  the  merits  of  Mr.  Bos- 
cawen's  services,  bears  down  justice  itself  before  it.  My  poor 
endeavours  to  serve  you  may  be  useful  in  some  respects,  though 
I  am  afraid  they  will  be  very  ineffectual  in  this. 

We  shall  have,  if  we  can  get  together,  a  powerful  fleet,  and 
an  active,  vigorous  army,  formidable  from  their  spirit  and 
experience  more  than  from  their  numbers.  With  this  force  we 
shall  assist  General  Amherst's  operations  in  the  river  St.  Law- 
rence. The  French  are  arming  in  all  their  ports  with  a  view  to 
the  preservation  of  their  colonies,  and  will  endeavour  to  throw 
in  succours  and  provisions  early  in  the  year.  I  hope  to  be  with 
you  in  May,  and  find  you  in  health,  with  resolutions  equal  to 
the  task  that  has  fallen  to  our  share. 

I  am,  dear  Murray,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

He  was  ever  ready  to  give  his  voice  for  merit,  as  the  following, 
amongst  other  letters,  shows. 

To  Captain  Martin.^ 

[Blackheath,  December  1758.  (?)] 
Dear  Sir, — I  have  written  by  this  post  to  Lord  George 
Sackville  to  let  him  know  that  you  have  served  with  me  at  the 

1  "  Major  Murray  had  not  only  greatly  distinguished  himself  at  Louisbourg, 
but  had  been  actively  engaged  for  three  or  four  years  previously  in  America, 
where  he  still  remained." — Wright. 

2  Of  the  Royal  Artillery. 


CHOOSES   HIS   BRIGADIERS        413 

seige  of  Louisbourg,  and  that  I  had  the  greatest  reason  to  be 
satisfied  with  every  part  of  your  conduct.  If  this  testimony  be 
of  any  use  to  you,  I  am  glad  you  put  it  in  my  power  to  give  it. 

Nothing  pleases  me  so  much  as  to  do  justice  to  the  gentlemen 
who  have  distinguished  themselves  under  my  command ;  and  if 
it  were  as  easy  to  reward  as  to  praise,  they  should  have  no 
reason  to  complain. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  &c., 

James  Wolfe. 

Wolfe,  having  carte  blanche  from  Pitt,  chose  two  men  to 
form  his  staff  that  he  knew  he  could  rely  upon.  At  the  head  of 
the  first  brigade  he  resolved  to  put  the  Hon.  Robert  Monckton, 
second  son  of  the  first  Viscount  Galway,  a  young  and  capable 
colonel  who  had  previously  earned  distinction  in  America  and 
conducted  the  difficult  and  painful  expulsion  of  the  Acadians  with 
much  tact.  The  third  brigade  was  given  to  the  Hon.  James 
Murray,  son  of  the  fourth  Lord  Elibank,  of  whose  conduct  at 
Louisbourg  Wolfe  had,  as  we  have  seen,  entertained  a  high 
opinion.  These  were  Wolfe''s  own  special  men ;  but  Pitt  had 
intimated  that  there  was  a  promising  colonel,  heir  to  a  famous 
political  house,  who  would  gladly  serve  under  him.  He  recom- 
mended the  appointment  of  Colonel  the  Hon.  George  Townshend. 
The  character  of  this  aristocratic  soldier  had  been  presented  in 
varying  lights.  For  some  years  he  had  been  out  of  the  army, 
owing  to  a  quarrel  with  the  Duke  of  Cumberland,  whose  aide-de- 
camp he  then  was ;  but  he  had  served  in  most  of  the  campaigns  in 
which  Wolfe  had  figured  of  the  Seven  Years"*  War.  A  sarcastic 
manner,  an  egregious  self-sufficiency  and  a  showy  person  obscured 
such  valuable  qualities  as  he  possessed.  Latterly  he  had  taken  to 
politics,  supporting  Pitt  with  the  Militia  Bill,  which  Townshend 
introduced  in  the  House  of  Commons.  On  the  fall  of  Cumberland 
and  his  succession  by  Ligonier,  Townshend  returned  to  the  army, 
was  given  the  rank  of  colonel  and  made  aide-de-camp  to  the  King. 

He  seems  to  have  been  anxious  for  an  opportunity  to  dis- 
tinguish himself  in  war,  and  Wolfe  could  hardly  fail  to  be 
impressed  by  the  compliment  of  such  a  man''s  desiring  to  serve 
under  him.  We  find  many  of  Townshend's  friends  regarding  his 
action  as  a  condescension.  Sir  Richard  Lyttelton,  the  Adjutant- 
General  at  the  War  Office,  writes  in  this  vein  :  "  I  congratulate  you 
most  sincerely  upon  the  honour  this  spirited  and  magnanimous 
acceptance  of  yours  will  do  you  in  the  world  as  soon  as  it  becomes 


414    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

known,  and  upon  the  glory  you  will  obtain,  and  I  flatter  myself 
the  short  time  you  will  be  absent  and  the  small  risk  you  will 
probably  run  in  this  enterprise  will  in  some  degree  reconcile  Lady 
Ferrers  ^  to  it." 

To  Townshend  the  Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Quebec  expedi- 
tion wrote  a  frank  and  cordial  letter. 

Wolfe  to  Townshend. 

London,  6  Jan.,  1769. 

Sir, — I  came  to  town  last  night  and  found  the  letter  you 
have  done  me  the  honour  to  write.  Your  name  was  mentioned 
to  me  by  the  Marshal  and  my  answer  was,  that  such  an 
example  in  a  person  of  your  rank  and  character,  could  not  but 
have  the  best  effects  upon  the  troops  in  America  and,  indeed, 
upon  the  whole  military  part  of  the  nation ;  and  I  took  the 
freedom  to  add  that  what  might  be  wanting  in  experience  was 
amply  made  up,  in  an  extent  of  capacity  and  activity  of  mind, 
that  would  find  nothing  difiicult  in  our  business.  I  am  to  thank 
you  for  the  good  opinion  you  have  entertained  of  me,  and  for 
the  manner  in  which  you  have  taken  occasion  to  express  your 
favourable  sentiments.  I  persuade  myself  that  we  shall  concur 
heartily  for  the  public  service — the  operation  in  question  will 
require  our  united  efforts  and  the  utmost  exertion  of  every  man's 
spirit  and  judgment. 

I  conclude  we  are  to  sail  with  Mr.  Saunders'  squadron.  Till 
then  you  will  do  what  is  most  agreeable  to  yourself.  If  I  hear 
anything  that  concerns  you  to  know — be  assured  of  the  earliest 
intelligence. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be. 

With  the  highest  esteem.  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  faithful  Humble  servant, 

J.  Wolfe. 

So  far,  therefore,  in  the  relations  between  Wolfe  and  Townshend 
all  was  well.  Unhappily,  this  cordiality  was  not  destined  to 
continue. 

So  high  stands  Wolfe's  name  that,  as  Wright  points  out,  no 
incident  in  his  life  which  does  not  accord  with  popular  estimation 
of  his  character,  is  ever  related  without  a  doubt  and  an  apology. 
But  if  we  have  been  able  in  these  pages  to  reveal  anything  of 
Wolfe,  and  he  has  been  able  in  his  letters  to  reveal  anything  of 

*  Lady  Ferrers  was  Townshend's  wife. 


BRIGADIER-GENEKAL   HON.    GEORGE   TOWNSHEND 
From  the  portrait  by  Thomas  Hudson 


LORD   TEMPLE'S   STORY  415 

himself,  it  is  that  he  was  intensely  human,  subject  to  error,  not 
without  vainglory,  quick  of  temper,  sanguine,  emotional,  vehe- 
ment to  a  fault.  In  short,  we  may  with  some  confidence  draw  a 
parallel  between  Wolfe  and  the  only  warrior  in  English  history 
whose  peculiar  glory  resembles  his.  Nelson,  to  discern  the  same 
faults  and  the  same  virtues  in  each.  Both  were  impatient;  im- 
petuous :  neither  was  averse  to  indulgence  in  that  frankness  of  self- 
confidence,  mistaken  by  duller  spirits  for  gasconade.  Both  were 
fond  of  ladies'  society,  both  were  the  idols  of  their  men,  both 
were  reckless  in  danger,  both  utterly  fearless  of  death.  Both 
Wolfe  and  Nelson,  too,  had  that  alertness  of  mind  which  led  them 
frequently  to  say  more  than  they  meant,  more  at  least  than  a 
phlegmatic  man  would  have  regarded  as  discreet.  We  may  easily 
believe  the  story  of  the  first  and  only  meeting  of  the  Duke  of 
Wellington  and  Nelson  in  the  Downing  Street  ante-room,  when  the 
former  formed  his  famous  "  double  estimate ''''  of  Nelson — first  as  a 
"vapouring  and  vainglorious  charlatan,"  and  afterwards  as  "a 
well-informed  officer  and  statesman "  and  "  really  a  very  superior 
man."  ^ 

Why,  therefore,  should  we  refuse  all  credence  to  the  story,  as 
"  repugnant  to  the  character  of  the  hero,"  which  Lord  Temple 
told  to  Grenville,  and  which,  after  the  lapse  of  a  generation, 
Grenville  told  to  Stanhope,  who  printed  it  with  many  apologies  in 
his  history  ?  It  must  be  confessed  the  story  is  come  by  in  rather 
a  roundabout  fashion  and  bears  marks  of  heightened  colouring, 
but  by  no  means  deserves  to  be  rejected  in  toto. 

"  After  Wolfe's  appointment,"  we  are  told,  "  and  on  the  day 
preceding  his  embarkation  for  America,  Pitt,  desirous  of  giving 
his  last  verbal  instructions,  invited  him  to  dinner.  Lord  Temple 
being  the  only  other  guest.  As  the  evening  advanced,  Wolfe, 
heated  perhaps  by  his  own  aspiring  thoughts  and  the  imwonted 
society  of  statesmen,  broke  forth  into  a  strain  of  gasconade  and 
bravado.  He  drew  his  sword,  he  rapped  the  table  with  it,  he 
flourished  it  round  the  room,  he  talked  of  the  mighty  things  which 
that  sword  was  to  achieve.  The  two  Ministers  sat  aghast  at  an 
exhibition  so  unusual  from  any  man  of  real  sense  and  real  spirit. 
And  when  at  last  Wolfe  had  taken  his  leave,  and  his  carriage  was 

1  There  is,  in  fact,  abundant  evidence  that  Nelson  not  infrequently 
displayed  the  unblushing  and  self-asserting  vanity  of  a  child,  with  all  a 
child's  love  of  praise  and  a  woman's  love  of  flattery,  and  that  Lady  Hamilton 
used  to  administer  both  to  him  in  abundance.  That  Nelson  could,  on  occasion, 
act  as  an  officer  and  judge  as  a  statesman,  we  knew  before  the  Duke's  story 
was  made  public— J   K.  Laughton,  Nelson,  p.  207. 


416    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

heard  to  roll  from  the  door,  Pitt  seemed  for  the  moment  shaken  in 
his  high  opinion  which  his  deliberate  judgment  had  formed  of 
Wolfe  ;  he  lifted  up  his  eyes  and  arms,  and  exclaimed  to  Lord 
Temple,  '  Good  God !  that  I  should  have  entrusted  the  fate  of  the 
country  and  of  the  Administration  to  such  hands  1 ' "  ^ 

Now  Temple  was  hardly  the  man  to  understand  Wolfe,  who 
was  probably  very  different  from  the  officers  of  his  acquaintance, 
who  were  not  supposed  to  exhibit  zeal  at  the  dinner-table,  nor 
any  particular  enthusiasms  unconnected  with  women,  horse-racing 
and  cards.  He  himself  was  sedateness  and  apathy  personified. 
As  Pitt  bitterly  (but  anonymously)  wrote  years  afterwards,  when  he 
quarrelled  with  his  brother-in-law.  Temple  "  might  have  crept  out 
of  life  with  as  little  notice  as  he  crept  in,  and  gone  off*  with  no  other 
degree  of  credit  than  that  of  adding  a  single  unit  to  the  bills  of 
mortality,^"*  had  he  not  derived  lustre  from  his  association  with 
himself.  Nor  had  Temple  any  very  high  reputation  for  veracity, 
if  his  contemporaries  are  to  be  believed,  his  forte  lying  in  mis- 
representing private  conversations.  The  incident  as  it  actually 
occurred  we  take  to  be  this :  Wolfe,  understanding  the  situation 
in  Canada  thoroughly,  and  appreciating  the  character  and  im- 
portance of  the  work  he  had  to  do,  opened  his  mind  with  great 
freedom,  expressing  the  indignation  he  felt  at  the  bloody  deeds  of 
the  French  and  Indians  and  the  necessity  of  putting  a  stop  to 
the  crimes  committed  against  the  English  colonists,  a  subject 
which  might  make  the  blood  boil  of  any  man  of  sensibility.^  As 
he  related  these  things  and  the  curse  which  the  French  regime  was 
to  Canada  and  the  Thirteen  Colonies,  we  can  see  colour  mount 
to  his  cheek,  the  flash  of  his  blue  eye,  the  vehement  gesture  with 
which  he  fortified  his  speech.  When  he  adverted  to  the  task 
accorded  his  own  hands  it  was  the  talk  of  a  soldier — of  a  man  with 
red  blood  in  his  veins.  If  it  was  an  "ebullition,'"'  it  was  an 
ebullition  resulting  from  the  fire  of  a  heroic  soul.  Temple  expressly 
stated  to  Grenville  that  Wolfe's  fervour  could  not  have  arisen 
from  any  excess,  as  he  "  had  partaken  most  sparingly  of  wine."" 

But  it  is  when  we  come  to  Stanhope's  comment  that  we  reach 
the  real  misconception  of  the  man  Wolfe.  "  This  story,"  he  says, 
"  confirms  Wolfe's  own  avowal  that  he  was  not  seen  to  advantage  in 
the  common  occurrences  of  life,  and  shows  how  shyness  may  at 
intervals  rush,  as  it  were,  to  the  opposite  extreme." 

It  is  perhaps  unnecessary  to  state  that  Wolfe  made  no  avowal 

1  Stanhope,  History  of  England. 

2  See  his  letter,  ante,  p.  389. 


ACCUSED    OF   MADNESS  417 

in  this  sense,  so  remote  from  the  truth.  As  to  his  shyness  in  the 
presence  of  Chatham,  it  is  hard  to  believe  that  a  man  who  dined 
and  conversed  freely  with  such  men  as  the  Duke  of  Bedford,  the 
Duke  of  Richmond,  Lord  Shelburne,  Lord  George  Sackville  and 
Lord  Blandford,  who  was  regarded  with  prodigious  favour  in 
numerous  drawing-rooms,  and  had  just  courted  successfully  one  of 
the  handsomest  and  most  fashionable  young  women  of  the  day, 
could  have  been  quite  overpowered  and  abashed  even  by  a  prime 
minister. 

Chatham,  full  of  theatricality  though  he  was,  did  not  really 
misinterpret  Wolfe.  He  knew  the  difference  between  unselfish  zeal 
and  madness.  But  his  colleague,  Newcastle,  who  probably  got  wind 
of  the  story,  could  not  fathom  such  patriotic  enthusiasm  not  based 
on  the  hope  of  tangible  reward.  He,  too,  could  be  guilty  of 
extravagant  conduct,  as  when  he  flung  himself  down  on  his  knees 
before  royalty  and  burst  into  tears,  but  it  was  when  his  own 
power  was  threatened.  He  ran  to  tell  the  King  that  Wolfe  was 
mad.  George  was  not  without  sagacity  and  biting  wit  at  times. 
"Mad,  is  he.?"  he  retorted  grimly,  thinking  of  the  failures  of 
Mordaunt,  Loudoun,  Abercrombie  and  his  own  son,  Cumberland ; 
"  then  I  hope  he  ^vill  bite  some  of  my  other  generals  !  "  Madness 
of  that  kind  is  a  virtue  in  war,  as  his  Majesty  well  knew,  and 
though  Wolfe  never  bit  the  generals,  he  had  already  inoculated  a 
dozen  lesser  officers  with  the  virus.  It  is  no  extravagance  to  assert 
that  Wolfe"'s  influence  on  the  British  Army  was  visible  on  the 
field  of  Waterloo. 

Turning  to  Wolfe's  correspondence,  nothing  could  be  more 
rational  and  modest  than  the  hopes  and  plans  expressed  in  the 
epistle  to  his  uncle  less  than  three  weeks  before  he  sailed. 

To  Major  Walter  Wolfe. 

London,  January  2Qth,  1759. 
Dear  Sir, — You  had  a  right  to  expect  to  hear  from  me 
sooner  and  I  am  to  blame  that  you  did  not.  These  omissions 
of  mine  are  too  frequent  even  with  those  I  love  and  honour 
most.  Mr.  Lynch  delivered  me  your  letter  and  proceeded 
directly  to  North  America,  where  in  the  course  of  the  campaign 
I  doubt  not  he  will  find  an  opening.  Our  force  is  considerable 
upon  that  continent  and  except  the  Garrisons  of  Louisbourg  and 
Halifax  will  all  be  employed  this  year,  and  as  early  as  possible. 
If  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  finds  means  to  baffle  our  efforts 
another  summer,  he  may  be  deemed  an  able  officer ;  or  the  colony 

E  E 


418    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   A¥OLFE 

has  resources  that  we  know  nothing  of;  or  our  Generals  are 
worse  than  usual.  We  had  Canada  in  our  hands  last  year  ;  with 
common  prudence  on  one  side,  and  a  little  spirit  of  enterprise 
on  the  other,  it  appears  to  me  that  Abercromby  might  have  cut 
off  the  enemy's  retreat  from  Ticonderoga,  and  in  the  end  forced 
them  to  lay  down  their  arms.  If  the  seige  of  Louisbourg  had 
been  pushed  with  vigour,  Quebec  would  have  fallen.  The  French 
are  arming  in  all  their  ports ;  their  object,  no  doubt,  is  the 
defence  of  Canada ;  ours  to  attack  it,  and  the  fleet  for  that 
service  is  formidable.  I  am  to  act  a  greater  part  in  this  business 
than  I  wished  or  desired.  The  backwardness  of  some  of  the 
older  ofiicers  has  in  some  measure  forced  the  Government  to 
come  down  so  low.  I  shall  do  my  best,  and  leave  the  rest  to 
fortune,  as  perforce  we  must  when  there  are  not  the  most  com- 
manding abilities.  We  expect  to  sail  in  about  three  weeks.  A 
London  life  and  little  exercise  disagrees  entirely  with  me,  but 
the  sea  still  more.  If  I  have  health  and  constitution  enough 
for  the  campaign,  I  shall  think  myself  a  lucky  man ;  what 
happens  afterwards  is  of  no  great  consequence. 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

It  was  now  time  for  Wolfe  to  depart.  We  shall  probably 
never  know  what  parting  scene  took  place  between  Miss  Lowther 
and  himself,  and  so  cannot  judge  whether  the  description  given  by 
Charles  Johnstone  in  Chrysal  has  any  merit  of  fidelity.  Johnstone, 
as  a  Limerick  man,  is  believed  to  have  had  a  personal  acquaintance 
with  the  Wolfe  family.     He  says — 

"  As  soon  as  he  had  recovered  from  the  softness  into  which  his 
mother's  tenderness  had  melted  him,  he  went  directly  to  his  mistress. 
She  received  him  with  the  freedom  proper  in  their  present  situation, 
but  soon  perceived  an  alteration  in  his  countenance,  that  showed 
her  his  heart  was  not  at  ease.  Tliis  alarmed  her  tender  fears. 
'  What,"*  said  she,  looking  earnestly  at  him,  '  can  make  a  troubled 
gloom  overcast  that  face,  where  hopes  and  happiness  have,  for 
some  time,  brightened  every  smile  ?  Can  anything  have  happened 
to  disturb  the  prospect  so  pleasing  to  us .?  Can  you  feel  a  grief 
that  you  think  me  unworthy  or  unable  to  share  with  you.?  It 
must  be  so ;  that  faint,  that  laboured  smile  betrays  the  sickness  of 
your  heart.' 

" '  Oh,  dearest  wish  of  my  heart,'  replied  he,  taking  her  hand 


MISS   KATHERINE    LOWTHER 

Irom  a  miniature  ly  Cosway,  in  the  possession  of  General  Wolfe  until  the  eve  of  his  death, 
and  now  owned  hy  Lord  Barnard,  of  Raby  Castle 


PARTS   FROM   MISS   LOWTHER    419 

and  kissing  it  in  ecstasy,  '  how  shall  I  merit  such  perfection  ?  It 
is  impossible ;  I  am  unworthy ;  but  let  my  soul  thank  Heaven  for 
blessing  it  with  this  opportunity  of  rising  nearer  to  a  level  with 
your  virtues — a  hope  that  will  soften  the  severity  of  absence,  and 
make  the  delay  of  happiness  seem  shorter.' 

"'What  canst  thou  mean?'  said  she,  a  jealous  doubt  alarm- 
ing her  delicacy.  'Delay!  I  understand  thee  not!  I  urge 
not!' 

" '  Mistake  not,  O  my  love,  the  inconsistencies  which  anguish 
extorts  from  my  bleeding  heart.  How  can  I  say  it  ?  Our  happiness 
is  delayed — delayed  but  to  be  more  exalted.  Honour,  the  service 
of  my  country,  call.' 

"'And  am  I  to  be  left?' 

" '  But  for  a  time,  a  little  time,  the  pain  of  which  shall  be 
overpaid  by  the  joy  of  meeting,  never  to  part  again.  Oh,  spare 
my  heart,  restrain  those  tears ;  I  am  not  worthy,  I  am  not  proof 
to  such  a  trial.  The  interest,  the  glory  of  my  country  demand 
my  service,  and  my  gracious  master  has  honoured  me  with  a  station, 
in  which  my  endeavours  may  be  effectual,  to  accomplish  his  com- 
mands— nay,  must  be  effectual — where  love  urges  duty,  where  you 
are  the  inestimable  reward.' " 

"  '  Go  !  go !  and  Heaven  guide  and  guard  your  steps ' — waving 
her  hand,  and  turning  from  him  to  hide  her  tears.  '  I  shall  no 
longer  struggle  with  the  sacred  impulse  that  leads  you  on  to  glory.' 
Then  turning  to  him.  '  But  remember  how  you  leave  me :  think 
what  I  feel  till  you  return.  .  .  .' 

"  '  This  is  too  much,'  said  he,  '  this  is  too  much.  I  never  can 
repay  this  excess  of  goodness.'  Then  breaking  from  her  arms  in  a 
kind  of  enthusiasm — '  Heaven  gives  my  soul,'  continued  he,  '  this 
foretaste  of  happiness,  as  an  earnest  of  success.  I  go  to  certain 
victory ;  the  prayers  of  angels  must  prevail ! ' 

"  Saying  these  words  he  rushed  out  of  the  room,  leaving  her 
half  dead  with  grief.  Nor  was  he  in  a  much  happier  state ;  the 
thought  of  parting  from  her  damping  the  ardour  that  had  enabled 
him  give  that  proof  of  his  resolution,  and  obliging  nature  to  pay 
the  tribute  of  a  flood  of  tears  to  such  a  sacrifice."  ^ 

One  fears  that  Wolfe,  ardent  as  he  was  at  times,  was  not  always 
to  be  relied  on  for  a  scene  of  sentiment.  If,  however,  he  acted  the 
impassioned  lover  towards  Miss  Lowther,  it  is  certainly  undiluted 

1  I  cannot  resist  the  temptation  to  give  at  such  length  this  perfect  example 
of  the  eighteenth-century  sentimental  novel-writing  manner. 

EE  2 


420    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

fiction  that  he  ever,  as  Johnstone  describes,  knelt  for  his  mother's 
blessing,  as  the  following  letter  demonstrates — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Dear  Madam, — The  formality  of  taking  leave  should  be  as 
much  as  possible  avoided ;  therefore  I  prefer  this  method  of 
offering  my  good  wishes  and  duty  to  my  father  and  to  you.  I 
shall  carry  this  business  through  with  my  best  abilities.  The 
rest,  you  know,  is  in  the  hands  of  Providence,  to  whose  care  I 
hope  your  good  life  and  conduct  will  recommend  your  son. 

Saunders  talks  of  sailing  on  Thursday,  if  the  wind  come  fair. 
The  "  Arc-en-ciel ""  is  either  arrived  or  expected  at  Spithead. 
Brett  has  been  directed  to  negotiate  our  affair  there.  I  heartily 
wish  you  health  and  easy  enjoyment  of  the  many  good  things 
that  have  fallen  to  your  share.  My  best  duty  to  the  General. 
I  am,  dear  Madam, 

Your  obedient  and  affectionate  Son, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 
London,  Monday  morn. 


I 


VICE-ADMIRAL   SIR   CHARLES    SAUNDERS,    K.C.B. 
From  a  contemporary/  portrait 


XVIII 
IN   THE   ST.   LAWRENCE 

Wolfe,  when  he  sailed  from  Spithead  on  the  14th  of  February, 
1759,  had  been  given  the  command  of  eight  thousand  troops  to 
achieve  a  feat  which  should  change  the  destinies  of  a  hemisphere. 
Such  a  force,  even  under  such  a  general,  would  have  been  inadequate 
had  it  not  been  supported  by  ships  and  sailors  and  a  naval  commander 
of  experience  and  sagacity.  Boscawen  was  out  of  the  question  :  as 
an  influential  member  of  Parliament  he  had  insisted  on  promotion 
to  the  Mediterranean  fleet.  Hawke  was  not  physically  fit  and 
aspired  to  command  the  Channel  fleet.  The  man  chosen  was  Sir 
Charles  Saunders,  one  of  Lord  Anson**s  favourite  officers,  who  had 
accompanied  that  famous  admiral  in  his  voyage  round  the  world. 
Saunders  was  a  capable  officer,  very  reserved  in  manner,  who  had 
lately  been  engaged  in  blockading  Brest.  He  was  now  appointed 
Commander-in-Chief  of  the  naval  part  of  the  Quebec  expedition, 
while  under  him  were  Rear-Admiral  Holmes  and  Rear-Admiral 
Dui-ell. 

Wolfe  sailed  in  Saundei-s"*  flagship.  He  and  the  Admiral  were 
not  acquainted  personally,  and  although  he  doubtless  perceived 
that  his  naval  colleague  was  a  man  of  ability,  he  yet  felt  some 
anxiety  through  the  entire  voyage  as  to  the  exact  degree  of  co- 
operation which  would  mark  their  relations  on  their  arrival  at  the 
seat  of  war. 

It  was  no  simple  dashing  for  a  goal  as  at  Rochefort.  Chatham's 
plan  of  campaign  was  designed  "  to  improve  the  great  and  im- 
portant advantages  gained  in  the  last  campaign,  as  well  as  to 
repair  the  disappointment  at  Ticonderoga."  The  Minister  had 
prescribed  a  most  complicated  and  delicate  set  of  operations  which 
many  circumstances  might  conspire  to  frustrate,  which  indeed  in 
its  entirety  only  by  the  most  fortuitous  chance  could  hope  to 
succeed.  Quebec,  in  his  scheme,  was  only  the  point  of  junction 
and  ultimate  object  of  three  separate  expeditions.  From  the  west 
a  Colonial  army  under  Brigadier  Prideaux,  together  with  a  few 
regiments  of  regulars  and  Sir  William  Johnson's  native  warriors, 
were  to  move  on  Niagara,  capture  that  stronghold  and  advance  to 
Montreal  by  Lake  Ontario.     From  the  south  Amherst's  army  of 

421 


422     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

12,000  men  was  to  demolish  Ticonderoga  and  Crown  Point,  gain 
the  Richelieu  river,  join  forces  with  Prideaux  there,  and  meet 
Wolfe  at  Quebec. 

And  this  great  and,  it  was  hoped,  final  attack  on  the  French 
position  at  Quebec  was  to  be  two-fold,  by  land  and  sea.  Naval 
men  held  then  and  have  held  since  that  the  naval  half  was 
equally  important :  military  men  scoffed  at  these  pretensions. 
Chatham's  instructions  to  Amherst  show  that  he  attached  the  chief 
value  to  the  army  commanded  by  Wolfe,  and  that  Admiral 
Saunders  was  merely  to  co-operate  with  Wolfe,  whenever  that 
military  commander  should  stand  in  need  of  such  services  as  the 
Navy  only  could  give.  Otherwise,  he  was  to  "cover"  Wolfe''s 
army,  and  keep  control  of  his  communications.  It  is  true  that 
Saunders  exceeded  this  and  gave  a  warm  and  loyal  support :  but  it 
is  as  well  to  understand  at  the  outset  just  what  the  Admiral's  place 
and  functions  were  in  the  Quebec  expedition,  because  some  zealous 
partisans  of  the  modern  "  blue-water  "  school  have  endeavoured  to 
prove  Saunders  equal  in  genius  and  power  of  initiative  to  Wolfe, 
and  therefore  deserving  to  share  half  the  honours  of  the  conquest 
of  Quebec. 

We  have  seen  that  Wolfe  attached  great  importance  to  that 
part  of  the  work  which  lay  before  them  entrusted  to  Durell.  He 
had  a  poor  opinion  of  Durell,  who  was  to  carry  out  the  ideas  he 
had  imparted  to  Pitt  on  Christmas  eve,  i.  e.  to  block  the  entrance 
to  the  river  St.  Lawrence  the  moment  the  ice  began  to  melt  and 
before  any  of  the  enemy's  ships  could  get  in  or  out. 

The  rendezvous  of  both  Army  and  Navy  of  the  home  and 
colonial  contingents  was  Louisbourg.  The  date  fixed  was  April 
20.  They  had  scarce  got  under  way  from  Spithead  when  an 
order  came  for  Saunders  from  Chatham.  He  was  secretly  to 
detach,  when  off  the  Spanish  coast,  a  couple  of  his  ships  (one  was 
the  Stirling  Castle)  to  reinforce  Bosca wen's  fleet.  Saunders'  decision 
to  substitute  another  vessel,  as  this  "  sixty  "  "  was  handy  for  rivers," 
shows  that  he  then  expected  to  sail  up  the  St.  Lawrence  and 
actually  second  Wolfe,  and  not  merely  cover  Wolfe's  army  and  keep 
control  of  the  communications.  The  Stirling  Castle,  which  he 
thus  so  nearly  lost,  came  to  be  his  flagship  before  Quebec. 

Late  as  was  the  date  for  the  rendezvous,  it  was  still  too  early 
for  the  Neptune  to  enter  the  ice-locked  Bay  of  Gabarus.  The 
winter  had  been  unusually  severe,  so  Saunders  steered  for  Halifax, 
where,  on  April  30,  the  joint  commanders  found  Durell's  squadron 
riding  at  anchor,  the  commander  explaining  that  he  was  waiting  to 


I 


REACHES    HALIFAX  423 

hear  if  the  ice  would  permit  him  to  enter  the  Gulf  of  St.  Lawrence. 
He  had  been  ready  to  sail  some  weeks.  Wolfe's  heart  sank  at  this 
evidence  of  half-heartedness  and  incapacity,  and  Saunders  ordered 
the  Rear-Admiral  to  sea  at  once.  Even  though  Louisbourg 
harbour  was  inaccessible,  it  by  no  means  followed  that  the  Gulf 
passage  was  also.  Even  now  it  might  be  too  late,  and  the  French 
ships  anxiously  expected  by  the  enemy  at  Quebec  might  have  got 
in.  Durell  was  enjoined  to  push  on  at  the  first  chance  with  his 
ships  as  far  as  the  Isle  of  Bic,  and  from  thence  to  detach  some 
small  vessels  to  the  Quebec  basin.  Durell  said  his  crews  were 
short,  and  asked  for  three  hundred  troops  to  complete  the  number. 
Wolfe  gave  the  three  hundred  troops,  and  with  them,  as  com- 
mander, his  friend.  Colonel  Guy  Carleton.  Adverse  winds  blew,  and 
it  was  May  5  before  Durell  was  off.  Wolfe  felt  his  plans  were  in 
great  danger  of  spoiling. 

On  the  day  after  his  arrival,  Wolfe  wrote  the  minister — 

To  William  Pitt. 

"  Neptune,"  Halifax  Harbour,  1st  May,  1759. 

Sir, — An  officer  of  Artillery  who  is  called  to  his  corps  gives 
me  an  opportunity  of  doing  myself  the  honour  to  inform  you  of 
what  I  have  learnt  or  seen  since  yesterday,  that  the  squadron 
came  to  an  anchor.  Mr.  Amherst  has  used  the  utmost  diligence 
in  forwarding  all  things  that  depended  upon  him,  and  I  hope 
that  the  two  battalions  from  the  Bay  of  Fundy  will  get  round  in 
good  time.  Schooners,  sloops,  whaleboats,  molasses,  and  rum  are 
provided,  and  hourly  expected.  Governor  Lawrence  and  the 
Brigadier-Generals  have  omitted  nothing  that  could  possibly 
forward  the  service,  and  our  engineers  have  been  employed  in 
some  useful  preparations.  By  the  "  Ruby  "  ordnance  ship  (the  only 
one  of  Mr.  Holmes'*s  convoy  yet  arrived  in  this  port),  we  have 
learnt  that  the  transports  were  scattered  in  a  hard  gale  of  wind  : 
but  as  the  "Ruby"  observed  only  one  ship  without  masts,  we 
conclude  that  the  greater  part  are  safe  at  New  York. 

Mr.  Durell  applied  for  troops  to  strengthen  his  squadron, 
which  were  readily  granted  by  the  commanding  officer  here,  that 
there  might  be  no  impediment  to  his  sailing.  I  have  added  250 
men  to  the  first  detachment,  and  have  put  the  whole  under  the 
command  of  the  Quartermaster-General,  Colonel  Carleton,  to  assist 
Mr.  DurelPs  operations  in  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  where  perhaps  it 
may  be  necessary  to  land  upon  some  of  the  islands,  and  push 
a  detachment   of  his  fleet  up  the  basin  of  Quebec,  that  the 


424     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

navigation  may  be  perfectly  free  from  transports.  By  this  early 
attempt,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  the  Canadians  will  not 
have  time  to  prepare  a  defence  at  the  Isle  aux  Coudres  and  at 
the  Traverse — the  two  most  difficult  and  rapid  parts  of  the  river, 
and  where  the  pilots  seem  to  think  they  might  and  would  (if 
not  prevented  in  time)  give  us  a  great  deal  of  trouble.  If  Mr. 
Durell  had  been  at  sea,  as  we  imagined,  I  did  intend  to  have 
sent  Colonel  Carleton  with  this  additional  force,  some  artillery 
and  tools,  with  the  first  ship  that  Mr.  Saunders  might  have 
ordered  to  reinforce  the  Rear- Admiral's  squadron.  The  battalions 
in  garrison  here  were  (till  very  lately  that  the  measles  had  got 
amongst  them)  in  very  good  order,  and  in  health  recovered  by 
the  more  than  common  care  of  the  officers  that  command  them. 
They  have  managed  so  as  to  exchange  the  salt  provisions  for 
fresh  beef,  and  have  had  constant  supplies  of  frozen  beef  and 
spruce-beer  all  the  winter.  This  excellent  precaution,  their  great 
and  generous  expense  in  the  regimental  hospitals,  and  the  order 
that  has  been  observed  amongst  them,  have  preserved  these 
battalions  from  utter  ruin. 

But  I  believe,  Sir,  you  will  be  surprised  to  find  that,  when 
the  500  men  for  the  defence  of  Nova  Scotia  are  deducted  from 
the  two  American  battalions,  these  four  regiments  have  no  more 
than  2000  men  in  a  condition  to  serve,  including  the  detachment 
with  Mr.  Durell.  The  levies  upon  the  Continent  have  prevented 
their  recruiting.  Otway's  and  Bragg's,  who  cannot  have  fared 
so  well  as  these,  and  have  lost  in  proportion  since  the  seige  of 
Louisbui'g,  are,  by  all  accounts,  in  a  worse  condition  ;  so  that,  if 
those  from  General  Amherst  should  not  be  very  complete,  our 
number  of  regular  forces  can  hardly  exceed  the  half  of  my  Lord 
Ligonier's  calculation,  and  yet  the  Marshal  must  know  that 
every  man  in  Canada  is  a  soldier.  Our  troops,  indeed,  are 
good  and  very  well  disposed.  If  valour  can  make  amends  for 
want  of  numbers,  we  shall  probably  succeed.  Any  accidents 
on  the  river,  or  sickness  among  the  men,  might  put  us  to  some 
difficulties.  The  six  companies  of  Rangers  will  be  pretty  near 
complete.  They  are  in  general  recruits  without  service  or  expe- 
rience, and  not  to  be  depended  upon  ;  and  the  company  of  Light 
Infantry  from  the  three  battalions  in  garrison  at  Louisbui'g  has, 
I  believe,  been  omitted  in  the  directions  sent  to  General  Amherst. 

I  beg  to  be.  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

On  the  same  day  he  wrote  to  his  titular  chief  at  New  York 


WRITES   AMHERST  425 

To  Major-General  Amherst. 

Halifax,  \st  May,  1759. 

I  am  glad  of  this  opportunity  to  inform  you  of  our  arrival 
and  in  tolerable  good  order  the  length  of  our  passage  considered. 
We  were  astonished  to  find  Mr.  Durell  at  anchor;  he 
demanded  troops  to  complete  his  squadron,  which  were  given 
without  loss  of  time.  I  send  Carleton  with  the  Rear  Admiral 
and  have  reinforced  the  first  detachment,  because  it  may  be 
necessary  to  land  upon  some  of  the  Islands  in  the  river,  and 
Mr.  Durell  may  think  it  right  to  push  a  detachment  of  his 
squadron  up  to  the  very  bason  of  Quebec.  Our  four  battalions 
are  at  a  very  low  ebb  and  I  believe,  if  Mr.  Mun-ay,  Mr.  Howe 
and  the  other  gentlemen  had  not  taken  more  than  common  pre- 
caution, and  been  at  more  than  ordinary  expense,  and  pains  for 
the  preservation  of  their  men,  assisted  by  Mr.  RusselFs  skill  and 
diligence,  these  regiments  would  have  been  annihilated.  Otway'^s 
and  Bragg's  are  still  worse,  as  I  am  informed.  So  that  you  see, 
Sir,  what  a  numerous  body  of  men  are  here  for  the  conquest  of 
Quebec.  I  believe  they  feel  stout,  and  so  they  had  need,  seeing 
there  is  not  a  multitude.  .  .  .  Mr.  Saunders  made  many 
attempts  to  get  into  Louisbourg,  but  there  was  such  a  crust  of 
ice  all  along  the  shore  from  Scutari  to  St.  Esprit,  that  it  was  by 
no  means  safe  to  push  in,  nor,  indeed,  possible  at  that  time. 
Our  ships  are  in  general  healthy. — I  hope  you  have  ordered 
Whitmore  to  give  me  the  company  of  light  Infantry  from  his 
three  battalions,  etc.  The  least  loss  in  the  river,  or  sickness 
among  the  men,  reduces  our  undertaking  to  little  more  than  a 
diversion — and  I  can  assure  you,  that  I  think  we  are  very  liable  to 
accidents.  It  can^t  be  doubted  that  the  French  have  thrown 
succours  in,  or  will  do  it,  before  our  squadron  gets  to  its  proper 
station.  The  harbour  of  Louisburg  being  as  yet  closed  up — it 
is  to  be  wished  that  any  troops  coming  from  the  continent,  or 
the  Bay  of  Fundy  within  this  fortnight,  might  put  into  Halifax 
and  take  the  security  of  Mr.  Saunders'  convoy  to  Louisburg. 

I  wish  you  health  and  success — of  the  former  I  have  but  a 
small  share ;  of  the  latter  as  little  hope,  unless  we  get  into  the 
river  first.     However,  trust  me  they  shall  feel  us. 

If  you  would  send  even  the  small  number  of  300  Pioneers,  it 
would  be  infinite  relief  to  the  soldiers,  because  these  (the  militia) 
could  be  constantly  at  work  having  no  other  occupation. 

There  is  a  great  siege  to  be  undertaken  and  not  a  farthing  to 
pay  the  workmen.     I  am  not   possessed  of  a  single  dollar  of 


426     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

public  money ;  and  yet,  it  is  much  a  question  among  the  mili- 
tary men,  whether  we  shall  not  be  obliged  to  fight  first  and 
besiege  afterwards. 

I  am,  etc.,^ 

J.  Wolfe. 

While  at  Halifax  Wolfe  was  most  alert  in  considering  the 
welfare  of  both  troops  and  seamen.  He  had  found  Saunders  a 
man  after  his  own  heart,  in  his  singleness  of  purpose,  and  he  resolved 
that  this  unanimity  should  extend  throughout  the  service.  On 
May  7  he  issued  the  following  order — 

"  As  the  navigation  of  the  river  St.  Lawrence  may  in  some 
places  be  difficult,  the  troops  are  to  be  as  careful  as  possible  in  work- 
ing the  ships,  obedient  to  the  Admiral's  commands,  and  attention 
to  all  his  signals.  No  boats  are  to  be  hoisted  out  to  sea,  but  on 
the  most  urgent  occasions.'*' 

On  May  9  he  says — "  After  the  troops  are  embarked,  the  com- 
manding officers  will  give  all  necessary  directions  for  the  preserva- 
tion of  the  health  of  their  men.  Guards  must  mount  in  every 
ship,  to  keep  strict  order  and  prevent  fire.  When  the  weather 
permits,  the  men  are  to  be  as  much  in  the  open  air  as  possible,  and 
to  eat  upon  deck.  Cleanliness  in  the  berths  and  bedding,  and  as 
much  exercise  as  the  situation  permits,  are  the  best  preservatives  of 
health.  ...  If  any  ship  by  accident  should  run  on  shore  in  the 
river,  small  vessels  and  boats  will  be  sent  to  their  assistance.  They 
have  nothing  to  apprehend  from  the  inhabitants  of  the  north  side, 
and  as  little  from  the  Canadians  on  the  south.  Fifty  men  with 
arms  may  easily  defend  themselves  until  succour  arrives.  If  a  ship 
should  happen  to  be  lost,  the  men  on  shore  are  to  make  three  dis- 
tinct fires  by  night  and  three  distinct  smokes  by  day,  to  mark  their 
situation."" 

Not  until  the  13th  did  the  troops  leave  Halifax  for  Louisbourg. 
On  Wolfe's  arrival  there  he  found  a  letter  announcing  the  death  of 
his  father,  the  "brave  and  benevolent"  Lieut.-General  Edward 
Wolfe.  The  veteran  had  succumbed  at  last  to  his  infirmities  on 
the  26th  of  March,  in  the  75th  year  of  his  age.  The  body  was 
removed  from  Blackheath  and  buried  in  a  vault  in  Greenwich 
Parish  Church  (St.  Alfege's),  which  had  been  recently  acquired  by 
the  General  for  his  family. 

^  Endorsed  :  In  Major-General  Amherst's  letter  of  June  19,  1759,  to  Pitt 
— dated  from  camp  at  Fort  Edward ;  acquainting  the  General  with  his 
arrival ;  the  state  of  the  troops  and  fleet ;  the  military  chest  empty  ;  and 
desiring  a  reinforcement  of  300  Pioneers  from  the  Provincials. 


HIS   FATHER'S   DEATH  427 

This  event  Wolfe  refers  to  in  the  following  letter  to  his  uncle. 
Its  interest  for  posterity  lies  in  a  masterly  description  of  the 
situation. 


To  Major  Walter  Wolfe. 

Louisbourg,  19<A  May,  1759. 

Dear  Sir, — Since  our  arrival  in  this  country  the  news  of  my 
father''s  death  has  reached  me.  I  left  him  in  so  weak  a  condi- 
tion that  it  was  not  probable  we  should  ever  meet  again.  The 
general  tenor  of  his  conduct  through  life  has  been  extremely 
upright  and  benevolent,  from  whence  one  may  hope  that  little 
failings  and  imperfections  were  overbalanced  by  his  many  good 
qualities.  I  am  exceedingly  sorry  it  so  fell  out  that  I  had  it 
not  in  my  power  to  assist  him  in  his  illness,  and  to  relieve  my 
mother  in  her  distress,  and  the  more  so  as  her  relations  are  not 
affectionate,  and  you  are  too  far  off  to  give  her  help.  I  have 
writ  to  Mr.  Fisher  to  continue  the  pensions  which  my  father  had 
assigned  to  his  kindred,  my  easy  circumstances  enabling  me  to 
fulfill  all  his  intentions. 

We  are  ordered  to  attack  Quebec, — a  very  nice  operation. 
The  fleet  consists  of  twenty-two  sail  of  the  line  and  many 
frigates,  the  army  of  9,000  men ;  in  England  it  is  called  12,000. 
We  have  ten  battalions,  three  companies  of  Grenadiers,  some 
Marines  (if  the  Admiral  can  spare  them),  and  six  new-raised 
companies  of  North  American  Rangers — not  complete,  and  the 
worst  soldiers  in  the  universe ;  a  great  train  of  artillery,  plenty 
of  provisions,  tools,  and  implements  of  all  sorts  ;  three  Brigadiers 
under  me, — all  men  of  great  spirit ;  some  Colonels  of  reputation, 
Carleton  for  Quartermaster-General,  and  upon  whom  I  chiefly 
rely  for  the  engineering  part.  Engineers  very  indifferent,  and  of 
little  experience  ;  but  we  have  none  better.  The  regular  troops 
in  Canada  consist  of  eight  battalions  of  old  Foot — about  400  a 
battalion — and  forty  companies  of  Marines  (or  colony  troops), 
forty  men  a  company.  They  can  gather  together  8,000  or 
10,000  Canadians,  and  perhaps  1000  Indians.  As  they  are 
attacked  by  the  side  of  Montreal  by  an  enemy  of  12,000  fighting 
men,  they  must  necessarily  divide  their  force ;  but,  as  the  loss  of 
the  capital  implies  the  loss  of  the  colony,  their  chief  attention 
will  naturally  be  there,  and  therefore  I  reckon  we  may  find  at 
Quebec  six  battalions,  some  companies  of  Marines,  four  or  five 
thousand  Canadians,  and  some  Indians ;  altogether,  not  much 
inferior  to  their  enemy. 


428     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Rear- Admiral  Durell,  with  ten  sail,  is  gone  up  the  river,  and 
has  orders  to  take  such  a  station  as  will  effectually  cut  off  all 
succours ;  but  as  he  sailed  late  from  Halifax  (4th  May)  there  is 
reason  to  think  that  some  store-ships  have  already  got  up.  If 
so,  our  difficulties  are  like  to  increase.  I  have  sent  a  detachment 
with  Mr.  Durell  to  assist  his  first  operations,  and  to  seize  the 
islands  in  those  parts  of  the  river  where  the  navigation  is  most 
dangerous.  The  Admiral  has  positive  instructions  to  watch  the 
first  opening  of  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  so  as  to  push  with  his 
squadron  as  high  as  the  Isle  de  Bic,^  and  from  thence  to  detach 
some  small  ships  to  the  basin  of  Quebec,  that  all  might  be  free 
and  open  behind.  The  Admiral  Commander-in-Chief  of  the 
fleet  is  a  zealous,  brave  officer.  I  don't  exactly  know  what  dis- 
position he  intends  to  make  in  the  river  after  the  junction  of  the 
two  squadrons ;  but  I  conclude  he  will  send  four  or  five  of  his 
smallest  ships  of  the  line  to  assist  us  at  Quebec,  and  remain  with 
the  rest  at  an  anchor  below  the  Isle  aux  Coudres,  ready  to  fight 
whatever  fleet  the  enemy  may  send  to  disturb  us. 

The  town  of  Quebec  is  poorly  fortified,  but  the  ground 
round  about  it  is  rocky.  To  invest  the  place,  and  cut  off"  all 
communication  with  the  colony,  it  will  be  necessary  to  encamp 
with  our  right  to  the  River  St.  Lawrence,  and  our  left  to  the 
river  St.  Charles.  From  the  river  St.  Charles  to  Beauport  the 
communication  must  be  kept  open  by  strong  entrenched  posts 
and  redoubts.  The  enemy  can  pass  that  river  at  low  water ;  and 
it  will  be  proper  to  establish  ourselves  with  small  entrenched 
posts  from  the  point  of  Levi  to  La  Chaudiere.  It  is  the  busi- 
ness of  our  naval  force  to  be  masters  of  the  river,  both  above 
and  below  the  town.  If  I  find  that  the  enemy  is  strong, 
audacious,  and  well  commanded,  I  shall  proceed  with  the  utmost 
caution  and  circumspection,  giving  Mr.  Amherst  time  to  use  his 
superiority.  If  they  are  timid,  weak,  and  ignorant,  we  shall 
push  them  with  more  vivacity,  that  we  may  be  able  before  the 
summer  is  gone  to  assist  the  Commander-in-Chief  ^  I  reckon  we 
shall  have  a  smart  action  at  the  passage  of  the  river  St.  Charles, 
unless  we  can  steal  a  detachment  up  the  river  St.  Lawrence,  and 
land  them  three,  four,  five  miles,  or  more,  above  the  town,  and 
get  time  to  entrench  so  strongly  that  they  won't  care  to  attack. 
If  General  Amherst  can  manage  to  have  a  superiority  of 

*  A  pilot  station  170  miles  from  Quebec. 

*  He  found  the  enemy  "  strong  and  well  commanded/'  and  the  audacity 
was  chiefly  his  own. 


BlllGADIEU-GENEKAL   HON.    KOBERT   MONCKTON 
From  the  portrait  by  Binjamin  West 


HIS   PERSONAL  EXAMPLE         429 

naval  force  upon  the  Lake  Champlain  (as  he  proposes),  all  the 
troops  within  the  entrenchments  and  fort  of  Ticonderoga  will 
probably  be  soon  obliged  to  lay  down  their  arms.  The  least 
conduct  there,  or  the  least  spirit  of  enterprise  on  our  side,  would 
have  finished  the  war  last  year.  It  is  impossible  to  conceive 
how  poorly  the  engineering  business  was  carried  on  here.  This 
place  could  not  have  held  out  ten  days  if  it  had  been  attacked 
with  common  sense.  The  army  under  my  command  is  rather 
too  small  for  the  undertaking,  but  it  is  well  composed.  The 
troops  are  firm,  and  were  brought  into  fire  at  this  siege.  Those 
that  were  with  me  are  most  excellent  pioneers.  If  the  French 
had  had  twenty  sail  of  men-of-war  in  the  harbour  (as  they 
intended),  and  had  not  gone  out  early  to  fight  Mr.  Boscawen, 
they  must  have  been  all  destroyed.  If  they  can  collect  a 
sufficient  force,  they  are  sure  to  find  us  in  the  River  St.  Lawrence 
any  time  between  this  and  the  month  of  October,  and  may  fight 
if  they  choose.  The  prize  seems  to  be  worth  the  risk  of  a  battle. 
If  their  Mediterranean  squadron  gets  out,  I  conclude  we  shall 
see  them. 

You  may  be  assured  that  I  shall  take  all  proper  care  of  my  own 
person,  unless  in  case  of  the  last  importance,  where  it  becomes  a 
duty  to  do  otherwise.  I  never  put  myself  unnecessarily  in  the 
way  of  danger.  Young  troops  must  be  encouraged  at  first. 
What  appears  hazardous  sometimes  is  really  not  so  to  people 
who  know  the  country.  The  separate  corps  which  I  commanded 
last  year,  divided  as  they  were  into  a  number  of  posts — encamped 
within  cannon-shot  of  the  ships  or  town,  and  often  within  the  reach 
of  grape-shot — suffered  hardly  any  loss  at  all,  because  the  ground 
is  so  imeven  that  we  could  place  them  everywhere  in  security. 
We  are  every  hour  in  expectation  of  seeing  the  regiments  arrive 
which  are  to  compose  the  army.  Most  of  them  are  actually  at 
sea,  and  upon  this  coast ;  but  the  fogs  are  so  frequent  and  lasting, 
that  ships  are  obliged  to  stand  out  to  sea  waiting  for  fair 
weather.  I  hope  we  shall  be  able  to  sail  in  about  ten  days,  and 
if  no  accident  happens  in  the  river,  I  hope  we  shall  succeed.  I 
wish  you  your  health  ;  mine  is  but  indifferent ;  and  am,  dear  sir, 

Your  obedient  nephew, 

J.  W. 

Nearly  four  months,  then,  before  the  great  coup,  and  before  he 
had  even  set  eyes  on  the  theatre  of  war,  he  anticipated  the  smart 
action  below  the  city  and  the  eventual  landing  above  it. 


430    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

On  the  same  day  he  wrote  to  Brigadier  Whitmore  who  had 
been  left  the  previous  autumn  in  command  of  Louisbourg. 

To  Brigadier  Whitmore. 

\Qth  May,  1759. 
Sir, — In  the  distribution  of  forces  for  the  invasion  of  Canada, 
my  Lord  Ligonier  had  regulated  that  Bragg's  regiment,  three 
companies  of  Grenadiers,  and  one  company  of  light  Infantry, 
besides  the  Rangers,  should  be  taken  from  Louisbourg,  and  re- 
placed by  1000  of  the  Boston  Militia.  By  some  accident,  the 
company  of  light  infantry  has  been  omitted  in  the  orders  sent 
from  England ;  nevertheless,  as  I  know  it  was  designed,  his 
Majesty's  service  requires  that  I  should  apply  to  you  for  that 
company ;  and  I  do  it  the  more  readily,  as  your  garrison  will  be 
rather  more  numerous  after  the  arrival  of  the  Boston  Militia 
than  before.  We  are  disappointed  of  the  recruits  which  were 
intended  to  be  sent  from  the  West  Indies  to  join  us ;  and  as 
several  regiments  are  much  weaker  than  they  were  thought,  in 
England,  to  be,  I  must  further  represent  to  you  that  good  troops 
only  can  make  amends  for  the  want  of  numbers  in  an  under- 
taking of  this  sort.  It  is  therefore  my  duty  to  signify  to  you 
that  it  would  be  much  for  the  public  service  to  let  the  other  two 
companies  of  light  infantry  embark  with  the  army  under  my 
command,  upon  condition  of  being  replaced,  man  for  man,  by 
some  of  the  Rangers  and  some  of  Frazer's  additional  companies, 
who  are  not  so  proper  for  the  field,  though  very  sufficient  for  the 
defence  of  a  fortified  place.  If  there  was  any  reason  to  appre- 
hend that  this  change  might  have  the  least  ill  consequence  I 
should  not  venture  to  propose  it.  Mr.  Lawrence,  who  has  a  very 
bad  fortress  and  a  very  weak  garrison,  accepted  of  the  sick  and 
recovering  men  of  the  two  American  battalions  as  part  of  the 
500  regulars  intended  for  the  defence  of  Novia  Scotia,  knowing 
very  well  that  upon  the  success  of  our  attacks  in  Canada,  the 
security  of  the  whole  continent  of  North  America  in  a  great 
measure  depends. 

I  am,  Sir,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

When  Wolfe  came  to  muster  his  troops  on  shore  at  Louisbourg 
he  found  he  had  exactly  8,635  men,  whereas  Pitt  had  planned  for 
his  having  12,000. 

Besides  Carleton,  the  Major-GeneraFs  staff  was  composed  as 
follows.     Adjutant-General,  Major  Barre ;  Chief  Engineer,   Major 


RIGHT   HON.    ISAAC    BAREl5,    M.P.    (WOLFE's   DEPUTY   ArjUTANTGENERAL 

AT    QUEBEC) 

From  a  contemporary  engraving 


NO    NEWS    OF    DURELL  431 

Mackellar;  Aides-de-camp,  Captains  Hervey  Smith  and  Thomas 
Bell ;  Deputy  Quartermasters- General,  Captains  Caldwell  and 
Leslie  ;  Majors  of  Brigade,  Captains  Guillem,  Spittal  and  Maitland. 
In  addition  to  the  three  brigades,  there  was  a  corps  specially  formed 
of  picked  men  denominated  by  Wolfe,  the  Louisbourg  Grenadiers, 
and  led  by  Lieut. -Colonel  Alexander  Murray ;  a  Light  Infantry  corps 
under  the  Hon.  Lieut. -Colonel  Howe  and  another  commanded  by 
Major  Dalling.      Then  there  were  Major  Scotfs  Provincial  Rangers. 

Up  to  the  1st  of  June  the  troops  landed  daily  for  exercise 
and  review  by  the  Commander-in-Chief  in  alternate  battalions.  "  I 
flattered  myself,"  writes  Knox,  a  captain  in  the  expedition,  who 
came  to  be  its  first  historian,^  "that  I  should  have  seen  the 
Grenadier  companies  of  this  garrison  reviewed  by  General  Wolfe, 
but  it  was  over  before  I  could  get  there.  I  was  told  they  went 
through  all  their  manoeuvres  and  evolutions  with  great  exactness 
and  spirit,  according  to  a  new  system  of  discipline ;  and  his 
Excellency  was  highly  pleased  with  their  performance.  Some  com- 
manding-officers of  corps,  who  expected  to  be  also  reviewed  in  their 
turn,  told  the  General  by  way  of  apology,  that  by  their  regiments 
having  been  long  cantoned,  they  had  it  not  in  their  power  to  learn 
or  practise  this  new  exercise  ;  to  which  he  answered,  '  Poh  !  poh  ! 
new  exercise — new  fiddlestick  !  if  they  are  otherwise  well  disciplined 
and  will  fight,  that's  all  I  require  of  them.' " 

By  the  6th  of  June  the  entire  fleet  was  clear  of  Louisbourg, 
the  movement  out  of  the  harbour  lasting  six  days.  Cheering  sol- 
diers packed  the  decks  of  each  transport,  and  at  mess  the  toast  was 
"  British  colours  on  every  French  fort,  port  and  garrison  in  North 
America.""  On  the  first  day  Saunders  announced  to  the  General 
that  he  had  orders  to  send  a  vessel  home  with  dispatches.  Wolfe 
urged  delay  until  they  had  news  of  Durell,  to  whose  movements 
he  attached  extreme  importance.  For  should  Quebec  be  reinforced 
he  might  have  to  wait  on  Amherst  and  Prideaux  instead  of  throw- 
ing the  weight  of  his  own  attack  with  a  prospect  of  success.  But 
Saunders  could  not  wait,  and  the  vessel  went  home,  bearing  the 
Major-GeneraFs  report  to  Pitt. 

To  THE  Right  Hon.  William  Pitt. 

On  board  the  '^  Neptune,"  June  6th,  1769. 
Sir, — By  the  report  which  I  have  the  honour  to  enclose,  you 
will  see  the  strength  of  the  army  under  my  command,  when 

^  Captain  John  Knox  :  Journal  of  the  Campaign  in  North  America,  vol.  i, 
p.  270. 


432     LIFE   AND   LETTERS    OF   WOLFE 

they  embarked,  and  when  they  came  to  Louisbourg.  The  fogs  on 
this  coast  are  so  frequent  and  lasting,  and  the  climate  in  every 
respect  so  unfavourable  to  military  operations,  that  if  we  had 
been  collected  a  week  sooner,  I  doubt  if  it  would  have  been 
possible  to  sail  before  we  did.  One  company  of  Rangers  (the 
best  of  the  six)  is  not  yet  arrived,  and  a  very  good  engineer,  by 
some  mistake,  has  had  no  orders  to  join  us.  General  Amherst 
forwarded  everything  to  the  utmost  of  his  power,  and  the  officers 
employed  by  him  were  indefatigable.  Finding  that  several  regi- 
ments were  weak,  and  that  no  recruits  were  likely  to  come  from 
the  West  Indies,  I  applied  to  Mr.  Whitmore  for  three  companies 
of  light  infantry  of  his  garrison  : — my  letter  and  the  Governor's 
answer  are  enclosed.  If  Brigadier  Whitmore  did  not  consent  to 
my  proposal  it  has  proceeded  from  the  most  scrupulous  obedience 
to  orders,  believing  himself  not  at  liberty  to  judge  and  act 
according  to  circumstances.  The  four  new  companies  of  Rangers 
are  so  very  bad  that  I  expect  no  service  from  them,  unless  mixed 
with  the  light  infantry,  and  it  was  with  that  view  that  I  applied 
to  the  Marshal  for  a  company  of  volunteers  from  Louisbourg. 
Five  field-officers  of  these  regiments  and  several  captains  are 
either  sick  or  employed  upon  the  continent ;  forty  men  of  Bragg's 
regiment,  upon  duty  at  St.  John's.  We  leave  eighty  sick  at 
Louisbourg,  and  a  hundred  invalids.  Several  transports  have 
not  yet  joined  us ;  their  provisions  and  their  boats  are  very 
much  wanted.  However  I  have  taken  3000  barrels  of  flour 
and  biscuit  from  the  contractor's  store  at  Louisbourg.  I  writ 
to  General  Amherst  for  money,  but  he  could  send  me  none ; 
this  is  one  of  the  first  sieges,  perhaps,  that  ever  was  undertaken 
without  it.  The  camp  equipage  of  three  regiments  is  supposed 
to  be  either  lost  or  taken  upon  the  passage  from  Philadelphia. 
We  have  supplied  them  with  tents  from  the  ordnance  stores, 
and  must  make  the  old  kettles,  etc.,  serve  the  campaign. 
There  are  1000  of  the  Boston  Militia  at  Louisbourg.  I  desired 
Brigadier  Whitmore  to  complete  our  companies  of  Rangers 
from  them,  and  to  give  me  100  labourers  solely  as  pioneers. 
The  men  were  asked  if  they  chose  to  go,  and  as  it  seldom 
happens  that  a  New  England  man  prefers  service  to  a  lazy  life, 
none  of  them  seemed  to  approve  of  the  proposal ;  they  did  not 
ask  it,  and  the  General  would  not  order  them. 

If  the  Admiral  had,  as  I  wished,  deferred  sending  his  letters 
till  the  fleet  got  up  to  the  Isle  of  Bic,  and  till  we  knew  what 
progress  Mr.  Durell  had  made,  (of  which  we   are  at  present 


ANSWERS   BARRINGTON  433 

entirely  ignorant)  you,  Sir,  would  have  been  able  to  form  some 
judgment  of  the  state  of  affairs.  There  we  might  learn  what 
succours  (if  any)  got  up  before  the  Rear- Admiral,  and  other 
circumstances  of  moment.  Since  the  fleet  came  out,  I  have 
received  a  letter  from  the  Lieut. -Governor  of  the  Massachusetts 
Bay,  acquainting  me  that  he  is  preparing  to  embark  300  of  the 
militia  of  his  province  to  serve  with  us.  These  are  the  pioneers 
which  I  desired  Gen.  Amherst  to  send.  Colonel  Burton  and 
Major  Barre,  who  were  employed  by  the  General  at  Boston,  have 
spoke  of  Mr.  Hutchinson's  zeal  for  the  public  service,  and  very 
great  knowledge  of  the  affairs  of  his  province,  in  a  manner  much 
to  his  advantage.  We  expect  to  find  a  good  part  of  the  force  of 
Canada  at  Quebec,  and  we  are  prepared  to  meet  them.  What- 
ever the  end  is,  I  flatter  myself  that  his  Majesty  will  not  be 
dissatisfied  with  the  behaviour  of  the  troops. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  etc., 

J.  Wolfe. 

The  dispatch  ship  bore  also  another  missive  from  Wolfe. 
When  he  had  hastened  home  from  Louisbourg  the  previous  autumn 
he  had  greatly  offended  Barrington,  the  Secretary  of  War,  who  had 
written  him  to  stay  there  in  a  letter  which  Wolfe,  by  his  hurried 
departure,  missed.  Ban-ington  had  afterwards  been  soundly  rated 
by  Pitt  for  allowing  Wolfe  to  return  home.  The  letter  missed  the 
Major-General  either  at  Bath  or  Blackheath,  was  subsequently 
forwarded  to  Louisbourg,  and  there  Wolfe  read  and  answered  it. 

To  Viscount  Barrington. 

"  Neptune,"  at  Sea,  6//i  June,  1759. 
My  Lord, — Since  my  arrival  in  America  I  have  had  the 
honour  to  receive  two  letters  from  your  Lordship,  one  of  an  old 
date  concerning  my  stay  in  this  country.  In  answer  to  which,  I 
shall  only  say,  that  the  Marshal  told  me,  I  was  to  retui'n  at 
the  end  of  the  Campaign,  and  as  General  Amherst  had  no  other 
commands  than  to  send  me  to  winter  at  Halifax  under  the 
orders  of  an  officer,  who  was,  but  a  few  months  before,  put  over 
my  head,  I  thought  it  was  much  better  to  get  into  the  way  of 
Service,  and  out  of  the  way  of  being  insulted.  And  as  the  style 
of  your  Lordship's  letter  is  pretty  strong,  I  must  take  the  liberty 
to  inform  you,  that  though  I  should  have  been  very  glad  to 
have  gone  with  Genl.  Amherst  to  join  the  Army  upon  the  Lakes, 
and   offered  my  services    immediately  after   the    reduction    of 

FF 


434    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Louisbourg  to  carry  a  reinforcement  to  Mr.  Abercrombie  if 
Quebec  was  not  to  be  attacked ;  yet  rather  than  receive  orders 
in  the  Government  of  an  officer  younger  than  myself  (tho**  a  very 
worthy  man)  I  should  certainly  have  desired  leave  to  resign  my 
commission  ;  for  I  neither  ask  nor  expect  any  favour,  so  I  never 
intend  to  submit  to  any  ill  usage  whatsoever.  Your  Lordship's 
letter  with  the  Cartel  concluded  between  his  Majesty  and  the 
French  King  is  come  to  my  hands  ;  Brigr.  Genl.  Murray  and 
Colonel  Howe  having  represented  to  me,  that  an  Ensign  of 
Amherst's  Regiment,  and  two  of  Anstruther's  had  not  joined 
their  Corps,  since  their  commissions  were  out,  and  that  General 
Amherst's  intentions  were  to  supercede  these  officers,  and  put 
others  in  their  room  more  disposed  to  serve,  I  have  therefore 
taken  upon  me  to  appoint  officers  to  these  commissions  in  con- 
formity to  the  General's  intentions,  and  for  the  good  of  his 
Majesty's  service,  waiting  however  to  within  a  few  days  of  our 
sailing  for  the  arrival  of  these  gentlemen.  There  are  no  less 
than  100  invalids,  absolutely  unfit  for  service  in  this  Corps  of 
Troops  (47  of  Fraser's  Regt.)  60  are  to  go  home  in  the  "  Night- 
ingale," and  40  in  a  Cartel  Ship  appointed  by  the  Admiral  to 
carry  prisoners  to  France.  I  have  filled  up  the  vacancies  in 
these  regiments,  and  enclose  my  report  of  it. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  with  great  Respect  my  Lord,  your 
Lordship's  most  obedient  and  most  Humble  Servant, 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

PS. — The  3  Ensigns  Commissions  are  dated  before  the 
letters ;  but  this  is  to  give  their  proper  rank  to  the  Volunteers 
who  succeeded. 

Owing  to  the  thick  fogs  it  was  a  week  before  they  could  enter 
the  Gulf,  and  the  fleet  did  not  reach  the  Isle  of  Bic,  where  they 
were  to  meet  Durell,  before  June  18.  That  officer  had,  it  appeared, 
sailed  on  up  the  river  after  capturing  a  French  storeship  and  a 
Quebec  sloop.  From  them  he  learnt  what  Wolfe  had  dreaded 
most.  Three  frigates  and  a  score  of  storeships  had  preceded  the 
procrastinating  Durell.  Wolfe  himself,  on  board  the  Richmond 
frigate,  in  advance  of  Saunders'  flagship  and  the  main  fleet,  got  the 
unwelcome  tidings.  Although  the  blow  was  a  serious  one  he  did 
not  know  all,  for  in  the  first  ship  to  pass  the  straits  was  Mont- 
calm's ablest  lieutenant,  Bougainville,  who  had  just  recrossed  the 
ocean  to  make  representations  to  the  French  Court.  Bougainville 
bore  an  intercepted  letter  from  Amherst  revealing  the  whole  of 


MONTCALM   IS   WARNED  435 

Pitt's  plan  of  campaign.  But  for  the  timely  information  Mont- 
calm thus  received  he  would  have  been  unable  to  make  his  prepar- 
ations, and  Wolfe,  instead  of  the  long  and  dreary  task  before  him, 
might  have  fallen  on  the  enemy's  weak  point  and  won  victory  in 
July  instead  of  September. 

Meanwhile,  bad  as  the  news  was,  Wolfe  hoped  for  the  best,  and 
it  was  certainly  a  satisfaction  to  know  that  Durell  had  pushed  on 
up  the  river  and  got  as  close  to  the  French  lines  as  possible — 
indeed,  farther  than  many  of  the  French  pilots  believed  possible. 
With  him  had  gone  Carleton,  from  whom  Wolfe  expected  but 
received  as  yet  no  tidings. 

Although  the  situation  was  not  fortunate  in  one  respect,  in 
another  it  was  more  than  Wolfe  had  ever  dared  expect.  He  had 
won  Saunders  over  to  a  co-operation  between  sea  and  land  forces 
as  perfect  as  it  could  be,  more  perfect  than  it  had  ever  been  in  any 
previous  expedition.  The  Admiral's  thoughts  and  resources  were  not 
to  be  primarily  (as  Wolfe  had  once  feared)  with  Halifax  and  Louis- 
bourg,  to  cover  the  rear  of  the  army,  but  he  and  his  ships  were  to  be 
at  the  General's  right  hand.  Anson  supposed  he  would  linger  with 
his  fleet  at  the  mouth  of  the  Gulf,  having  put  the  transports  and 
guide  frigates  on  the  safe  path.  Saunders,  too,  it  appeared,  was  a 
fighting  man,  and  agreed  to  accompany  Wolfe  with  his  entire 
battle  squadron  to  the  walls  of  the  fortress  which  Wolfe  meant 
should  be  taken. 

This  feat  of  sailing  up  his  battle  squadron  appeared  easier  to 
resolve  than  to  accomplish.  The  St.  Lawrence  to  the  Isle  of 
Orleans  was  only  navigable  by  trained  pilots.  For  a  stranger  to 
sail  such  a  stream  was  to  court  certain  destruction.  Daily  the 
men  of  the  fleet  were  employed  anchoring,  weighing  and  tacking, 
while  the  view  on  either  side  of  the  river  was  quaint  and  attractive 
enough  to  draw  many  of  the  soldiers  on  deck  ^  to  get  their  first 
glimpses  of  the  Canadian  villages,  with  their  spired  churches  and 
curious  architecture.  The  approach  of  the  fleet  was  heralded  by 
signal  fires  which  were  lighted  on  the  shore,  and  which,  in  the  case 
of  St.  Joseph's,  aroused  the  hostility  of  the  habitants,  who  fired 

^  As  considerate  as  he  was  courteous,  the  young  commander  had  provided 
for  the  recreation  and  health  of  the  soldiers  by  ordering  that  eacli  regiment 
should  be  supplied  with  fishing-hooks  and  lines,  and  that  a  certain  quantity  of 
ginger  should  be  given  to  every  man  daily  for  the  purpose  of  mixing  with  the 
water  they  drank.  By  the  20th  most  of  the  ships  had  doubled  the  Point  of 
Tadoussac,  where  the  powerful  current  from  the  dark  and  deep  tributary 
Saguenay  drove  back  several  of  the  transports  and  forced  others  from  their 
anchors. — Wright. 

FP  2 


436    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

upon  one  of  the  sounding  boats.  It  was  thought  well  to  make  an 
example  of  this  assault,  and,  although  no  lives  were  lost,  a  detach- 
ment of  troops  from  before  Quebec  was  sent  to  burn  and  lay  waste 
the  settlement. 

One  of  the  transports  in  the  van  was  the  Goodwill,  whose  master 
was  an  old  seaman  named  Killick.  The  assertions  of  the  French 
pilot  that,  owing  to  the  terrors  of  the  passage  through  the  river, 
Canada  would  prove  the  grave  of  the  most  of  Wolfe's  army, 
so  disgusted  this  honest  fellow  that,  but  for  the  Admiral's  stern 
orders,  he  would  have  thrown  him  overboard.  At  it  was,  he 
decided  to  dispense  with  his  unwilling  services. 

"I'll  convince  you,"  he  cried,  "that  an  Englishman  shall  go 
where  a  Frenchman  dare  not  show  his  nose  ! "  So,  careless  of  the 
sounding  boats  which  lined  the  stream,  he  took  the  helm  and  drove 
ahead  with  great  coolness  and  (it  must  be  added)  great  luck. 
When  he  had  successfully  negotiated  the  fatal  Traverse,  he  ex- 
claimed to  his  cheering  audience  on  deck,  "  D n  me  if  there 

are    not    a    thousand    places    in    the    Thames    fifty   times    more 
dangerous ! "" 

The  French  pilot  asked  Knox  "  if  the  old  seaman  hadn't  been 
there  before,  and  on  hearing  that  he  had  not,  he  lifted  his  hands 
and  eyes  to  heaven  with  fervency."  As  for  the  French,  we  may 
learn  what  they  thought  by  a  passage  in  a  letter  from  Vaudreuil 
to  his  Government.  "  The  enemy,"  he  wrote,  "  have  passed  sixty 
ships  of  war  where  we  durst  not  risk  a  vessel  of  a  hundred  tons  by 
night  and  day." 

Travelling  in  this  manner,  the  transports  reached  the  east  end 
of  the  Isle  of  Orleans.  Over  twenty  miles  long  is  this  fertile 
island  (though  but  four  wide),  a  narrow  strip  of  land  dividing  the 
St.  Lawrence  into  two  channels.  The  upper  end  bounds  the  Quebec 
basin,  and  faces  the  city  four  miles  away.  Off  St.  Laurent  the 
troops  were  charmed  with  the  scenery.  "  Here,"  says  Knox,  "  we 
are  entertained  with  a  most  agreeable  prospect  of  a  delightful 
country  on  every  side — windmills,  water-mills,  churches,  chapels 
and  compact  farm-houses,  all  built  with  stone  and  covered,  some 
with  wood  and  others  with  straw.  The  land  appears  to  be  every- 
where well  cultivated,  sowed  with  flax,  wheat,  barley,  pease,  etc., 
and  the  grounds  enclosed  with  wooden  pales.  The  weather  to-day 
agreeably  warm.  A  light  fog  sometimes  hangs  over  the  highlands, 
but  in  the  river  a  fine  clear  air." 

On  the  26th  the  fleet  anchored  off*  St.  Laurent.     That  same 
afternoon  Wolfe,  on  board  the  Richmond,  issued  his  orders  for 


QUEBEC!  437 

the  landing  upon  the  Isle  of  Orleans  at  six  oclock  the  following 
morning.  At  midnight  he  sent  a  body  of  forty  Rangers  under 
Lieutenant  Meech  to  reconnoitre  on  shore.  Their  presence  caused 
a  stampede  of  the  peasantry  and  Indians,  and  although  one  of  their 
number  was  scalped  and  butchered,  they  reported  at  dawn  that  the 
island,  so  far  as  they  could  ascertain,  was  deserted.  The  troops 
duly  landed,  and,  with  the  exception  of  a  detachment  or  two,  were 
encamped  about  a  mile  inland.^ 

The  parish  cure  of  St.  Lam'ent,  having  first  removed  every 
ornament  or  movable  which  might  tempt  the  cupidity  of  the 
British  soldier,  stuck  up  a  placard  beseeching  "  the  worthy  officers 
of  the  British  Army ''  that  from  their  well-known  humanity  they 
would  protect  the  sacred  building  as  well  as  his  house  and  tene- 
ments adjoining,  adding  with  charming  irony,  that  he  regretted 
their  not  arriving  earlier  in  the  season,  as  they  might  have  enjoyed 
his  asparagus  and  other  products  of  his  garden,  now  unhappily 
gone  to  seed. 

Having  seen  the  army  encamped,  Wolfe,  with  Major  Mackellar, 
the  engineer-in-chief,  and  an  escort  of  light  troops,  strode  off  to 
reconnoitre  the  enemy's  position  at  Quebec  and  the  features  of  the 
surrounding  country.  From  St.  Laurent  no  view  was  possible,  but 
a  couple  of  miles  brought  the  party  to  the  western  end  of  the 
island  and  there  they  were  rewarded  with  the  prospect  in  all  its 
grandeur. 

Quebec  !  What  must  have  been  in  the  heart  and  brain  of  the 
young  general  when  the  great  rocky  fortress  first  "  swam  into  his 
ken '"  1  Did  he  flinch  when  those  massive  heights,  seemingly  so 
impregnable,  flashed  in  the  sun  upon  his  wondering  gaze  ?  "  Three 
or  four  thousand  men,"  boasted  Bougainville,  "  could  hold  it  against 
all  comers."*'  There  were  now  over  four  times  that  number  behind 
the  frowning  walls  and  the  surrounding  entrenchments. 

But  it  was  not  the  cannon-studded  fortress  itself,  from  whose 
citadel  floated  the  flag  of  the  lilies,  but  that  which  greeted  the 
British  commander  on  his  right  hand  which  gave  him  pause — 
w^hich  made  him  realize  instantly  that  he  must  wholly  change  his 

1  Sparks  relates  an  anecdote  of  the  landing.  One  of  the  ensigns  in  Bragg's 
regiment  was  William  Henry  Fairfax  of  the  noble  Virginian  family,  the 
friends  of  Washington  in  early  life — a  youth  of  much  promise^  who  had  been 
educated  in  England.  Wolfe  saw  him  as  the  army  landed_,  seated  near  the 
bank  of  the  river,  and  touching  him  on  the  shoulder,  said,  "Young 
man,  when  you  come  into  action,  remember  your  name  I "  The  injunction 
was  not  forgotten.  The  worthy  inheritor  of  his  noble  name,  young  Fairfax 
of  the  78th,  ere  long  fell  on  the  same  glorious  field,  about  the  same  time, 
and  close  by  his  commander. 


438     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

plans.  The  French  were  not  holding  the  fort  in  Quebec.  Their 
line  of  battle  extended  all  along  the  north  shore  for  eight  miles, 
from  the  fortress  to  the  River  Montmorenci,  whose  famous  falls 
glittered  white  and  sparkling  before  him.  Every  spot  on  that 
elevated  bank  was  defended  by  a  redoubt,  and  behind  that  redoubt 
were  the  white-clad  regiments  of  Beam,  Guienne  and  Royal 
Roussillon,  the  trained  men  of  the  colonial  marine,  the  militia  and 
their  bloodthirsty  Indian  allies.  In  the  centre  of  this  line  stood 
the  village  of  Beauport,  which  gave  its  name  to  the  shore.  On 
this  Beauport  shore  Wolfe,  as  we  have  seen  in  his  letter  to  his 
uncle  Walter,  meant  to  have  landed.  He  expected  a  "smart 
action  ''*  at  the  St.  Charles  river,  whence  he  would  fall  boldly  upon 
Quebec  at  short  range.  His  field  glass  now  showed  him  how  his 
hopes  were  frustrated.  The  French,  not  content  to  rely  solely 
upon  the  strength  of  Quebec  itself,  had  put  formidable  barriers 
in  the  way  of  attacking  the  city  at  close  quarters.  Montcalm  and 
his  army  must  be  defeated  before  the  British  general  could  even 
approach  the  fortress.  As  for  any  hope  of  surmounting  the 
heights  higher  up  the  river  past  Quebec,  it  must  surely  be 
abandoned. 

It  was  all  so  different  in  reality  from  what  he  had  heard 
by  report  or  seen  on  paper  ! 

When  the  truth  of  the  situation  burst  upon  him,  Wolfe  turned 
away  back  to  St.  Laurent — disappointed  it  may  be,  but  as  resolute  as 
ever.  On  the  return  journey  the  sky  suddenly  darkened,  a  teri'ific 
storm  of  wind  sprang  up  and  the  rain  descended  with  great  violence. 
A  typical  Laurentian  hurricane  wrenched  several  of  the  transports 
from  their  moorings,  causing  the  men-of-war  to  strain  heavily  on 
their  cables.  In  the  middle  of  the  camp  the  flag  of  England, 
drenched,  but  stiff  in  the  gale,  greeted  Wolfe  on  his  return.  He 
may  have  smiled  in  the  conviction  that,  difficult  as  the  emprise 
was,  bloody  as  the  issue  might  be,  fatal  even  to  himself,  that 
solitary  flag  so  placed  would  henceforward  over  Canadian  soil  float 
for  ever.  The  storm  was  spent :  the  sun  went  down  Quebec-wards 
in  a  gold  and  crimson  sky.  The  men  lit  their  camp  fires,  supped, 
and  in  still  air  and  under  a  gleaming  moon  slept  soundly  in  their 
tents.  The  hand  was  laid  to  the  work  :  to-morrow  would  see  the 
work  in  earnest  begun. 

The  damage  done  to  the  ships  by  the  storm  made  it  clear  to 
Saunders  that  St.  Laurent  was  a  bad  anchorage,  and  he  resolved  to 
move  the  fleet  two  or  three  miles  nearer  to  Quebec.  While  the 
Admiral   reconnoitred,   Wolfe   busied   himself  establishing   posts 


H 


HIS   FIRST   MANIFESTO  439 

throughout  the  island,  and  in  drawing  up  orders  to  the  troops. 
"  Once  for  all,""'  he  directed  peremptorily,  "  the  men  must  not 
wander  about  in  a  disorderly  manner.*"  For  men  who  had  been 
boxed  up  on  shipboard  for  months  it  was  perhaps  but  natural  that 
they  should  first  revel  in  the  comparative  freedom  of  land.  But 
the  general  was  resolved  on  the  strictest  discipline.  "The  army 
must  hold  themselves  in  readiness  always  to  get  under  arms,  either 
to  march  or  fight,  at  the  shortest  notice.*"  He  also  on  this  day 
composed  a  manifesto  in  the  French  language,  which  was  afterwards 
posted  up  by  Monckton  on  the  door  of  the  village  church  of 
Beaumont.^     The  translation  by  Knox  is  as  follows — 

By  his  Excellency  James  Wolfe,  Esq.,  Colonel  of  a  Regiment  of 
Infantry,  Major-General,  and  Commander-in-Chief  of  his  Britannic 
Majesty''s  Forces  in  the  River  St.  Lawrence,  etc. 

The  formidable  sea  and  land  armament  which  the  people  of 
Canada  now  behold  in  the  heart  of  their  country,  is  intended  by 
the  King,  my  master,  to  check  the  insolence  of  France,  to  revenge 
the  insults  offered  to  the  British  colonies,  and  totally  to  deprive 
the  French  of  their  most  valuable  settlement  in  North  America. 
For  these  purposes  is  the  formidable  army  under  my  command 
intended.  The  King  of  Great  Britain  wages  no  war  with  the 
industrious  peasant,  the  sacred  orders  of  religion,  or  the  defenceless 
women  and  children ;  to  these,  in  their  distressful  circumstances, 
his  royal  clemency  offers  protection.  The  people  may  remain 
unmolested  on  their  lands,  inhabit  their  houses,  and  enjoy  their 
religion  in  security.  For  these  inestimable  blessings  I  expect  the 
Canadians  will  take  no  part  in  the  great  contest  between  the  two 
crowns.  But  if,  by  a  vain  obstinacy  and  misguided  valour,  they 
presume  to  appear  in  arms,  they  must  expect  the  most  fatal  con- 
sequences— their  habitations  destroyed,  their  sacred  temples  exposed 
to  an  exasperated  soldiery,  their  harvest  utterly  ruined,  and  the 
only  passage  for  relief  stopped  up  by  a  most  formidable  fleet.  In 
this  unhappy  situation,  and  closely  attacked  by  another  great  army, 
what  can  the  wretched  natives  expect  from  opposition  .? 

The  unparalleled  barbarities  exerted  by  the  French'against  our 
settlements  in  America  might  justify  the  bitterest  revenge  in  the 
army  under  my  command ;  but  Britons  breathe  higher  sentiments 
of  humanity,  and  listen  to  the  merciful  dictates  of  the  Christian 

1  Wright  says  "  a  translation  in  French  of  the  following  manifesto/'  and 
then  gives  the  document  as  if  it  were  the  original.  It  is^  of  course,  itself  only 
a  translation  of  the  manifesto  penned  hy  Wolfe,  with  Barre's  assistance. 


440     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

religion.  Yet,  should  you  suffer  yourselves  to  be  deluded  by  an 
imaginary  prospect  of  our  want  of  success  ;  should  you  refuse  these 
terms,  and  persist  in  opposition,  then  surely  will  the  law  of  nations 
justify  the  waste  of  war,  as  necessary  to  crush  an  ungenerous 
enemy ;  and  then  the  miserable  Canadians  must  in  the  winter  have 
the  mortification  of  seeing  their  very  families,  for  whom  they  have 
been  exerting  but  a  fruitless  and  indiscreet  bravery,  perish  by  the 
most  dismal  want  and  famine.  In  this  great  dilemma  let  the 
wisdom  of  the  people  of  Canada  show  itself.  Britain  stretches  out 
a  powerful  yet  merciful  hand ;  faithful  to  her  engagements,  and 
ready  to  secure  her  in  her  most  valuable  rights  and  possessions. 
France,  unable  to  support  Canada,  deserts  her  cause  at  this  import- 
ant crisis,  and  during  the  whole  war  has  assisted  her  with  troops, 
who  have  been  maintained  only  by  making  the  natives  feel  all  the 
weight  of  grievous  and  lawless  oppression. 

Given  at  Laurent,  in  the  Island  of  Orleans,  this  28th  day  of 
June,  1759. 

Even  as  Wolfe  penned  this  proclamation  and  Saunders  searched 
for  a  safer  anchorage,  the  enemy  was  preparing  a  coup  from  which 
great  results  were  hoped.  At  midnight  on  the  28th  a  sentry  at 
Pointe  d'Orleans  observed  a  number  of  black  objects  floating  on 
the  water.  Thinking  them  some  craft  belonging  to  the  enemy 
approaching  the  island  he  gave  the  alarm  to  his  comrades.  As  he 
did  so,  a  flash  lit  up  the  darkness  accompanied  by  a  deafening  dis- 
charge of  shot  and  shell.  In  a  moment  a  whole  fleet  of  flaming 
fireships  stood  revealed.  As  one  after  another  of  these  terrific 
engines  of  destruction  become  ignited,  explosion  after  explosion 
rent  the  midnight  air.  So  startled  by  the  apparition  was  the 
picquet,  scarce  half  awakened,  that  they  fled  in  a  panic  to  their 
comrades  in  the  main  body,  reinforced  by  other  picquets  as  they 
ran.  The  whole  army  sprang  to  arms,  as  if  the  French  were  upon 
them,  and  not  until  dawning  day  allayed  their  fears  was  order  in 
the  ranks  restored.  The  troops  then  discovered  what  it  was  which 
had  so  startled  them. 

Elaborately  and  regardless  of  expense  the  French  had  prepared 
seven  fireships  which,  in  the  hopes  of  setting  ablaze  Saunders"'  fleet, 
they  had  launched  from  beneath  their  batteries  at  Quebec.  The 
distance  to  be  traversed  was  six  miles  and  the  navigation  difficult ; 
yet  had  the  officer  in  command,  Delouche,  kept  his  head,  Vaudreuirs 
fond  hopes  might  not  have  been  baffled.  But  he  did  not  keep  his 
head  :  prematurely  he  applied  the  match  and  fled  to  his  boat ;  his 


"VIGILANCE  AND   CAUTION  "        441 

companions  in  the  other  fireships  did  the  same.  And  so  the  seven 
belching  messengers  of  destruction  were  left  to  the  hazard  of  the 
tide  to  reach  their  destination  before  their  destructive  power  was 
exhausted.  In  this  exploit  one  French  captain  and  six  marines 
perished.  That  which  had  cost  the  enemy  a  million  livres  proved 
utterly  futile.  Having  timely  notice  in  the  terrific  premature 
cannonading  off  Orleans  Point,  the  cool-headed  tars  of  Saunders' 
picquet-boats  rowed  out  to  the  flaming  monsters  and,  with  loud 
huzzas,  towed  them  ashore.  There  they  blazed  harmlessly  till 
dawn,  brilliantly  illuminating  the  sky  for  miles  around. 

"  They  were  certainly,''  says  Knox,  "  the  grandest  fireworks  (if 
I  may  be  allowed  to  call  them  so)  that  can  possibly  be  conceived, 
many  circumstances  having  contributed  to  their  awful,  yet  wonder- 
ful, appearance,  and  afforded  a  scene  infinitely  superior  to  any 
adequate  description."  ^ 

But  the  incident  of  the  fleeing  picquets  roused  Wolfe's  indigna- 
tion, and  in  his  orders  on  the  29th  severely  did  he  reprimand  such 
conduct.  Their  officer  was  arrested  and  ordered  to  be  tried  by 
court-martial,  but  as  he  bore  an  excellent  character  and  was  only 
technically  responsible  for  the  panic,  he  was  subsequently  pardoned 
at  Monckton's  intercession.  Wolfe's  opinion  was  spread  broadcast. 
"  Next  to  valour,"  he  wrote,  "  the  best  qualities  in  a  military 
man  are  vigilance  and  caution."  There  probably  never  lived  a 
soldier  who  more  strikingly  combined  in  himself  all  three  of  these 
virtues. 

Meanwhile  Admiral  Saunders  was  intent  on  getting  his  ships 
out  of  the  narrow  channel  off*  St.  Laurent  to  a  securer  anchorage. 
He  found  such  opposite  Point  Levis,  but  believed  that  the  French 
were  erecting  a  battery  there.  Informing  Wolfe  instantly  of  his 
surmise,  he  begged  him  to  dispatch  sufficient  troops  to  dislodge 
the  enemy.  The  General  complied  with  this  request  with  a 
promptness  which  might  well  have  made  old  Vernon  and  Cathcart 
turn  in  their  graves. 

Monckton,  with  his  four  battalions,  was  ordered  to  cross  the 
river  to  Beaumont,  a  village  lying  immediately  to  the  south.  On 
the  30th  Monckton  gained  Point  Levis,  and  brushing  aside  a  hand- 
ful of  Canadian  militia  seized  it  almost  without  a  blow.  Here,  in 
full  view  of  Quebec,  with  the  assistance  of  the  Marines,  Monckton 
threw  up  entrenchments  for  his  brigade.  Townshend  was  ordered 
to  march  his  brigade  to  Pointe  d'Orleans,  on  the  island  just  opposite 
Monckton,  and  there  encamp.  When  Saimders  had  moved  up  his 
*  Journal,  vol.  i.  p.  298, 


442    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

fleet  into  the  basin,  the  situation  ere  sunset  on  July  1  may  be  said 
to  have  been  clearly  revealed  to  both  Admiral  and  General.  Be- 
siegers and  besieged  confronted  one  another. 

We  may  therefore  seize  this  opportunity  to  pierce  through  the 
bastions  and  entrenchments  of  the  enemy,  and  briefly  describe  the 
men,  and  more  particularly  the  man  who,  on  this  day  afterwards 
to  be  celebrated  by  millions  as  the  birthday  of  the  Canadian 
Confederation,  was  pitted  against  the  hero  of  these  pages  in  a  life- 
and-death  struggle  for  the  possession  of  Canada. 


MAJOR-GENERAL    MARQUIS   DE   MONTCALM 

From  the  family  portrait  in  the  Chateau  d'Avege 


XIX 
THE   REVERSE   AT  MONTMORENCI 

Never  before  had  Canada  boasted  so  many  French  soldiers  as 
had  now  been  for  some  seasons  arrayed  under  the  command  of 
Louis  Joseph,  Marquis  de  Montcalm-Gozon.^ 

In  the  three  years  during  which  this  eminent  soldier  had  been 
Commander-in-Chief  of  the  Canadian  Army  he  had,  in  spite  of 
manifold  difficulties  and  the  dishonesty  or  maladroitness  of  his 
superiors,  managed  to  set  several  important  successes  to  his  credit. 
He  had  fallen  upon  Oswego  and  destroyed  it,  taking  1,400 
prisoners  and  great  booty.  He  had  brought  about  the  retirement 
of  Lord  Loudoun  and  his  army,  and  from  the  strong  French 
fortress  of  Ticonderoga  he  had  led  6,000  troops  against  Fort 
William  Henry  and  compelled  the  commander.  Colonel  Munro,  to 
capitulate.  In  this  siege  Montcalm  had  been  assisted  by  a  horde 
of  savage  followers,  who  understood  nothing  of  terms  of  capitula- 
tion or  the  French  code  of  honour.  The  consequence  was  that 
as  the  garrison,  with  the  women  and  children,  filed  through  the 
woods  on  the  way  to  Fort  Edward,  the  Indians  fell  upon  them,  and 
one  of  the  most  dreadful  massacres  in  New  World  history  ensued. 
Having  given  up  their  muskets  to  the  victors,  the  soldiers  had 
nothing  wherewith  to  defend  themselves;  they  were  scalped  by 
hundreds,  helpless  women  and  children  were  brained  by  toma- 
hawks or  against  the  trunks  of  trees.  Montcalm  was  horrified  at 
the  disgraceful  business ;  but  there  were  others  amongst  the 
French  who  anticipated  it,  and  it  was  this  which  made  Wolfe's 
gorge  rise  when  the  news  reached  England.^ 

^  Montcalm  was  born  in  the  Chateau  de  Candiac,  near  Nimes,  February 
29 J  1712,  and  was  thus  fifteen  years  Wolfe's  senior.  Wliile  still  a  boy 
he  wrote  to  his  father  that  he  was  resolved  to  be  a  brave  and  Christian  gentle- 
man, a  good  scholar,  a  good  horseman,  a  good  fencer  and  dutiful  and  submis- 
sive to  his  parents  and  tutor  :  a  lengthy  list  of  resolves  which  his  after  life 
shows  he  endeavoured  to  carry  out  and  with  success. 

2  ^^  There  is  no  doubt,"  remarks  Wood,  ^^that  the  French  are  absolutely 
clear  of  any  suspicion  of  foul  play  in  this  affair  ;  but  with  6,000  troops  near 
by  it  seems  that  they  might  have  taken  more  precautions  to  safeguard  their 
prisoners  from  1,800  Indians.  The  divided  command  was  probably  the  cause 
of  their  disastrous  negligence." — The  Fight  for  Canada,  p.  72. 

443 


444     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Subsequently  the  French,  under  Montcalm,  had  triumphed  on 
Lake  Champlain,  where  General  Abercrombie  had  tried  to  take 
Ticonderoga  with  15,000  men,  failing  miserably. 

But  behind  the  confident  aspect  Quebec  offered  to  the  foe  was 
a  strange  scene  of  despair  and  corruption.  The  Viceroy  was  PieiTe 
Francois  de  Rigaud,  Marquis  de  Vaudreuil,  who  had  been  born 
in  the  colony  during  the  long  vice -royalty  of  his  father  more  than 
half-a-century  before.  Amongst  the  officials  of  the  colony  reckless 
extravagance  prevailed,  and  the  chief  of  these  officials  was  the 
Intendant,  Francois  Bigot.  In  two  years  alone  it  is  estimated  that 
Bigot's  robberies  amounted  to  nearly  a  million  pounds  sterling.^ 

Montcalm  was  wretched  because  of  the  vices  and  irregularities 
around  him,  but  in  his  capacity  of  merely  military  commander 
was  powerless  to  check  them.  Jealous  of  Montcalm,  Governor 
Vaudreuil  answered  his  warnings  haughtily,  and  the  breach  between 
the  two  men  widened.^ 

WTien  Bougainville  rejoined  Montcalm  in  the  spring  of  1759, 
after  his  mission  to  France,  he  brought  out  the  King's  orders  to 
defend  the  colony  to  the  last  with  the  forces  at  the  Commander-in- 
Chiefs  disposal,  and  at  least  not  to  yield  Quebec. 

"  How  small  soever  the  space  you  are  able  to  hold  may  be,"" 
wrote  Marshal  Belleisle,  "  it  is  indispensable  to  keep  a  good  hold 
in  North  America,  for  if  we  once  lose  the  country  entirely,  its 
recovery  will  be  almost  impossible.  The  King  counts  on  your 
zeal,  courage  and  persistency  to  accomplish  this  object,  and  relies 
on  you  to  spare  no  pains  and  no  exertions.  I  have  answered  for 
you  to  the  King." 

1  Bigot's  is  one  of  the  most  infamous  names  in  French-Canadian  annals. 
He  was  a  lawyer,  ambitious,  intelligent  and  fond  of  luxury  and  display.  Yet 
with  all  his  intelligence  he  fell  easily  a  prey  to  the  wiles  of  a  certain  Madam 
Pe'an,  who  turned  the  King's  service  to  her  private  advantage.  Servants, 
lackeys,  upstarts  were,  by  her  influence,  placed  in  responsible  positions.  If 
they  happened  to  be  ignorant  and  dishonest  it  was  no  bar  to  their  promotion. 
Taxes  were  multiplied,  and  the  poor  people  of  Canada  were  made  to  suffer. 
Bigot  and  his  official  band  of  robbers  held  office  to  the  last  moment  of  French 
dominion  in  Canada. 

2  In  his  Journal,  under  date  of  January  1757,  Montcalm  wrote,  ''  I  left 
for  Quebec  on  the  3rd.  M.  I'lntendant  lives  there  in  grandeur,  and  has 
given  two  fine  balls,  where  I  have  seen  over  eighty  very  charming  ladies, 
beautifully  dressed.  I  think  Quebec  a  town  of  very  good  style,  and  I  don't 
believe  we  have  in  France  more  than  a  dozen  cities  that  could  rank  higher  as 
regards  society.  As  for  numbers,  the  population  is  not  more  than  12,000. 
The  strong  taste  of  M.  I'lntendant  for  gambling,  the  extreme  complaisance 
of  M.  de  Vaudreuil,  and  the  regard  that  I  must  show  for  two  men  vested  with 
the  King's  authority,  have  caused  gambling  of  the  most  dangerous  kind  to 
take  place.     Many  officers  will  feel  it  bitterly  before  long." 


POINT   LEVIS   OCCUPIED  445 

To  this  Montcalm  replied,  "  I  shall  do  everything  to  save  this 
unhappy  colony  or  die." 

It  was  certainly  not  his  fault  that  the  British  had  been  allowed 
to  entrench  themselves  so  cheaply  at  Point  Levis.  He  had  sug- 
gested that  4,000  men  should  take  possession  of  this  spot  and  erect 
batteries ;  but  he  was  over-ruled  by  the  Governor,  who  laughed  at 
the  idea  of  the  British  artillery  carrying  across  the  river  so  as  to 
inflict  any  serious  damage  upon  Quebec.  Now  that  Monckton  was 
actually  entrenched  the  enemies  sent  three  floating  batteries  to 
dislodge  him.  Met  by  one  of  Saunders'  frigates  they  hastily 
withdrew. 

Wolfe  now  crossed  over  with  a  detachment  and  surv^eyed  the 
scene.  On  July  2,  under  escort  of  the  48th,  he  marched  to  Point 
des  Peres,  two  miles  to  the  westward  and  only  the  river's  width 
from  Quebec.  At  close  quarters  with  the  fortress  he  had  deter- 
mined to  take  or  perish,  he  ordered  gun  after  gun  into  position 
with  barbet  batteries  close  to  the  water's  edge,  while  Montcalm, 
less  than  a  mile  away,  looked  on  in  mingled  admiration  and  concern. 
The  following  days  were  spent  in  landing  siege  guns  and 
mortars,  in  which  both  soldiers  and  sailors  toiled  with  enthusiasm. 
The  safety  of  the  fleet  depended  upon  the  strength  of  Pointe 
d'Orleans  and  Point  Levis ;  but  it  was  from  a  third  point  that 
Wolfe  was  resolved  to  make  his  chief  onset.  This  was  Beauport,  a 
post  on  the  north  side  of  the  river,  near  Montmorenci  Falls,  and 
just  opposite  the  spot  where  Carleton  had  been  sent  to  make  a  camp. 
Wolfe  thus  laid  himself  open  to  the  charge  of  splitting  up  his 
small  force,  but  in  so  splitting  it  up  he  knew  precisely  what  he  was 
doing.  He  wished  to  tempt  the  enemy  into  making  an  attack 
upon  any  one  of  the  three  divisions,  when  he  knew  he  could  rely 
upon  his  transports  to  make  the  units  cohere  before  Montcalm 
could  deal  him  any  very  damaging  blow.  Although  he  had  many 
conferences  with  Saunders  on  this  very  point,  it  is  to  be  feared  he 
did  not  always  take  his  brigadiers  into  his  confidence,  much  to  the 
disgust  of  two  of  them,  as  will  shortly  be  seen. 

For  example,  when  Monckton's  troops  were  attacked  by  a 
French  scouting  party,  several  hundred  Canadians  and  Indians, 
after  a  brisk  encounter,  succeeded  in  scalping  twenty  British 
soldiers  and  taking  one  prisoner.  This  prisoner,  taken  before 
Vaudreuil,  declared  that  the  British  intended  to  make  an  imme- 
diate descent  upon  Beauport,  and  that  their  occupation  of  Levis 
was  really  a  covering  diversion.  As  a  consequence  of  this  informa- 
tion the  French  scouts  were  hurriedly  withdrawn  from  Levis,  and 


446    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

his  troops  strengthened  at  Beauport.  The  attack  never  came,  but 
the  prisoner's  warning  may  have  been  true  enough  at  the  time. 
Wolfe  changed  his  plans,  as  he  did  frequently  during  the  siege, 
and,  says  Doughty,  "  so  far  as  his  letter- writing  critics  could  see, 
without  the  colour  of  a  reason.""^ 

On  July  5  Wolfe  issued  the  following  orders — 

Camp  at  the  Island  of  Orleans. 

The  object  of  the  campaign  is  to  complete  the  conquest  of 
Canada  and  to  finish  the  war  in  America.  The  army  under 
the  Commander-in-Chief  will  enter  the  colony  on  the  side  of 
Montreal,  while  the  fleet  and  army  here  attack  the  Governor- 
General  and  his  forces.  Great  sufficiency  of  provisions  and  a 
numerous  artillery  are  provided ;  and  from  the  known  valour  of 
the  troops,  the  nation  expects  success.  These  battalions  have 
acquired  reputation  in  the  last  campaign,  and  it  is  not  to  be 
doubted  but  they  will  be  careful  to  preserve  it.  From  this 
confidence  the  General  has  assured  the  Secretary  of  State,  in  his 
letters,  that  whatever  may  be  the  event  of  the  campaign  his 
Majesty  and  the  country  will  have  reason  to  be  satisfied  with 
the  behaviour  of  the  army  under  his  command.  The  General 
means  to  carry  the  business  through  with  as  little  loss  as 
possible,  and  with  the  highest  regard  to  the  preservation  of 
the  troops.  To  that  end  he  expects  that  the  men  work  cheer- 
fully and  without  the  least  unsoldierlike  murmur  or  complaint, 
and  that  his  few  but  necessary  orders  be  strictly  obeyed.  .  .  . 

As  the  safety  of  the  army  depends  in  a  great  measure  upon 
the  vigilance  of  the  outguards,  any  officer  or  non-commissioned 
officer  who  shall  suffer  himself  to  be  surprised  by  the  enemy, 
must  not  expect  to  be  forgiven.  False  alarms  are  hurtful  in  an 
army,  and  dishonourable  to  those  who  occasion  them.  The 
outposts  are  to  be  sure  that  the  enemy  are  in  motion  before  they 
send  their  intelligence.  ...  In  most  attacks  by  night,  it  must 
be  remembered  that  bayonets  are  preferable  to  fire.  .  .  .  No 
churches,  houses,  or  buildings  of  any  kind  are  to  be  burned  or 
destroyed  without  orders.  The  persons  that  remain  in  their 
habitations,  their  women  and  children,  are  to  be  treated  with 
humanity.  If  any  violence  is  offered  to  a  woman,  the  offender 
shall  be  punished  with  death.  If  any  persons  are  detected 
robbing  the  tents  of  officers  or  soldiers,  they  will  be,  if  con- 

^  A.  Doug-hty,  The  Siege  of  Quebec,  an  exhaustive  work  of  six  volumes 
dealing  with  these  operations.     Quebec,  1901. 


BOMBARDMENT   COMMENCES     447 

demned,  certainly  executed.  The  commanders  of  regiments  are 
to  be  answerable  that  no  rum,  or  spirits  of  any  kind,  be  sold  in 
or  near  the  camp.  When  the  soldiers  are  fatigued  with  work, 
or  wet  upon  duty,  the  General  will  order  such  refreshment  as  he 
knows  will  be  of  service  to  them,  but  is  determined  to  allow  no 
drunkenness  nor  licentiousness  in  the  army.  If  any  sutler  has 
the  presumption  to  bring  rum  on  shore,  in  contempt  of  the 
General's  regulations,  such  sutler  shall  be  sent  to  the  Provost  in 
irons,  and  his  goods  confiscated.  The  General  will  make  it  his 
business,  as  far  as  he  is  able,  to  reward  such  as  shall  particularly 
distinguish  them,  and,  on  the  other  hand,  will  punish  any 
misbehaviour  in  an  exemplary  manner. 

On  the  12th  the  firing  of  a  rocket  was  Wolfe's  signal  for  the 
batteries  at  Point  Levis  to  begin  the  bombardment  of  Quebec.  At 
first  the  shells,  falling  short,  were  greeted  with  the  derisive  cheers 
of  the  French.  Their  laughter  was  of  short  duration  ;  the  gunners 
quickly  got  their  range,  and  the  destructive  rain  of  shot  and  shell 
tore  through  the  roofs  and  walls  of  the  doomed  city.  The  Com- 
mander-in-Chief well  knew  that  the  grim  fortress  was  not  to  be  won 
by  his  cannon,  and  that  to  destroy  the  city  was  only  to  render  the 
after-work  of  reparation  more  arduous  when  it  finally  fell  into  his 
hands.  But  to  weaken  the  enemy  and  to  exert  a  moral  effect  he 
did  not  spare  his  powder. 

It  was  now  high  time  for  Wolfe,  entrenched  on  the  south 
shore  and  on  the  Isle  of  Orleans,  to  get  a  firm  footing  on  the 
north  shore.  To  accomplish  this  a  feint  was  made  by  some  troops 
and  ships  higher  up  the  river,  while  Wolfe  crossed  over  from 
the  island  with  3,000  of  Townshend's  and  Murray's  troops  and 
established  his  head-quarters  on  the  heights  east  of  the  Montmo- 
renci  river.  He  hoped  at  some  point  or  other  of  the  Montmo- 
renci  to  find  a  fordable  spot  from  which  he  could  penetrate  into 
the  enemy's  entrenchments,  and  so  precipitate  what  his  soul 
hungered  for,  a  general  engagement. 

For  some  time  past  strained  relations  had  existed  between 
Townshend  and  the  Commander-in-Chief.  It  is  probable  that  the 
spoilt,  satirical  brigadier  had  under-estimated  the  master-genius  of 
Wolfe,  or  that  Wolfe  had  pierced  through  the  shallowness  of 
To>vnshend.^   Whatever  the  cause,  we  find  Townshend  complaining 

1  His  descendant^  Brigadier-General  Charles  V.  F.  Townsliend,  who 
has  so  ably  defended  his  ancestor  in  the  course  of  his  biography,  writes  me 
from  Bloemfontein,  South  Africa:  "With  my  knowledge  of  the  world  and  the 


448    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

in  his  Journal  of  the  manner  in  which  he  was  treated.  Once, 
when  apprehensive  of  a  night-attack,  he  constructed  some  elaborate 
breastworks  at  Montmorenci.^ 

"  The  next  morning  the  General  having  gone  early  to  rest  in 
the  evening,  I  reported  to  him  what  I  had  done,  and  in  the  evening 
he  went  round  the  front  and  disapproved  of  it,  saying  I  had  indeed 
made  myself  secure,  for  I  had  made  a  fortress  ;  that  small  redoubts 
were  better  than  lines  ;  that  the  men  could  not  man  these  lines, 
nor  sally  out  if  they  pleased.  At  the  same  time  that  he  said  this 
he  had  one  battalion  of  my  brigade  and  two  which  had  arrived 
that  morning  (10th  July)  from  the  Isle  of  Orleans,  encamped  upon 
the  descent  of  the  hill  with  their  front  to  the  River  St.  Lawrence, 
and  their  rear  to  the  rear  of  our  1st  Line  ;  exposed  to  the  cannon- 
shot  of  the  enemy,  the  first  of  which  went  through  their  tents  and 
raked  their  encampment  from  right  to  left.'"*  ^ 

Townshend  felt  himself  a  far  better  general  than  Wolfe. 

"The  next  day  (11th  July)  I  perceived  with  my  glass  an  officer 
with  an  escort  very  much  answering  the  description  of  M.  Mont- 
calm, examining  our  camp  from  the  same  spot.  I  acquainted  the 
General  with  this,  who  rather  laughed  at  it  and  at  my  expectation 
of  any  annoyance  from  that  part.'"* 

This  was  bad  enough — to  laugh  at  the  brilliant  Townshend — 
but  worse  was  to  follow.  On  the  13th  the  second  brigadier  was  in- 
dustriously making  the  spot  chosen  for  the  new  camp  cannon-proof. 

"  Whilst  I  was  directing  the  work,  I  heard  that  the  General  had 
set  out  for  the  Point  of  Orleans,  thence  to  pass  over  to  the  Point  of 
Levis,  leaving  me,  the  first  officer  in  the  camp,  not  only  without 
orders  but  also  even  ignorant  of  his  departure  or  time  of  return. 
Upon  this  I  ran  down  as  fast  as  I  could  to  the  water-side,  and 
having  desired  Mr.  Caldwell  to  stop  him  till  I  could  come  up  with 
him,  he  received  me  in  a  very  stately  manner,  not  advancing  five 
steps.     I  told  him  that  if  I  had  suspected  his  intentions  of  going 

army  now,  I  can  see  so  plainly  why  Wolfe  did  not  hit  it  off  with  his  brigadiers. 
They  were  all  very  young  men,  and  Wolfe  was  the  youngest.  Monckton  and 
Townshend  had  been  aides-de-camp  on  the  Duke  of  Cumberland's  staflF  at 
Fontenoy  when  Wolfe,  as  a  Brigadier-Major,  had  gone  over  their  heads  in 
the  army.     That  explains  the  friction  and  consequent  misunderstandings." 

^  We  are  told  that  Townshend  had  a  dangerous  gift  for  pictorial  carica- 
ture. On  one  occasion  the  victim  was  Wolfe  himself  at  the  Generals'  mess. 
ITie  caricature  (of  Wolfe  reconnoitring  a  disreputable  out-house)  being  passed 
along,  finally  came  to  the  General,  who  changed  colour  at  the  indignity,  and 
crumpled  the  paper  into  his  pocket.  "  If  I  live,"  he  said,  with  a  dangerous 
smile,  *^Hhis  shall  be  inquired  into  ;  but  we  must  beat  the  enemy  first." 

2  Military  Life  of  Townshend,  p.  177- 


PLAN   OF   OPERATIONS  449 

over  I  had  waited  on  him  for  his  commands  which  I  should  be  glad 


o  .5' 


to  receive  and  execute  to  his  satisfaction.    '  Sir ! '  says  he  very  dryly, 
'  the  Adjutant-General  has  my  orders — permit  me,  Sir,  to  ask  are 


Q  G 


450     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

your  troops  to  encamp  on  their  new  ground,  or  not  to  do  it  until 
the  enemy's  battery  begins  to  play  ? ' " 

Wolfe  regarded  Townshend's  fastidious  performances  very 
properly  as  a  waste  of  time,  although  his  biographer  thinks  they 
proved  that  Townshend  was  "  far  more  advanced  in  his  views  than 
Wolfe.""  But  is  it  any  wonder  Townshend's  cup  of  humiliation 
nearly  overflowed  ? 

Beneath  the  fury  of  Wolfe's  shells  the  lower  town  became  much 
damaged,  and  on  the  16th  shells  set  fire  to  the  upper  town  as  well. 
Fanned  by  a  strong  wind  the  flames  spread  rapidly,  consuming 
many  buildings,  including  the  cathedral.  Yet  as  far  as  ever  from  a 
coming-out  spirit  was  Montcalm.  There  were  frequent  exchanges 
of  sentiments  under  flags  of  truce.  Once  Montcalm's  aide-de-camp 
observed  to  Wolfe :  "  We  do  not  doubt  but  you  will  demolish  the 
town ;  yet  we  are  determined  that  your  army  shall  never  get  a 
footing  within  its  walls."  Wolfe  replied :  "  I  will  be  master  of 
Quebec  if  I  stay  here  until  the  end  of  November." 

On  another  occasion,  a  French  officer  having  expressed  his 
surprise  that  the  English  were  so  infatuated  as  to  undertake  the 
conquest  of  Quebec  with  a  mere  handful  of  troops :  "  Though  we 
are  few  and  scattered,"  was  the  answer,  "  your  army,  in  spite  of  its 
superior  numbers,  is  afraid  of  us.  You  do  not  dare  to  leave  your 
strong  entrenchments  to  attack  any  of  our  camps  and  batteries." 

If  he  could  only  draw  the  French  out  of  their  trenches  !  That 
was  Wolfe's  most  ardent  hope.  But  so  far  Montcalm  resolutely 
declined  to  be  so  drawn.  True,  Wolfe's  batteries  at  Montmorenci 
soon  began  to  be  most  inconvenient,  and  there  were  hurried  counsels 
in  the  French  camp  as  to  whether  they  should  not  be  driven  forth. 
But  "  drive  them  thence,"  said  Montcalm,  "  and  they  will  give  us 
more  trouble.  While  they  are  there  they  cannot  hurt  us.  So  let 
them  amuse  themselves." 

Hurrying  constantly  from  camp  to  camp  was  Wolfe.  On  the 
night  of  the  18th,  from  Pointe  d'Orleans,  he  awaited  anxiously  the 
result  of  a  bold  move  he  had  concerted  with  Saunders.  A  small 
British  squadron,  under  cover  of  a  terrific  cannonade  from  Point 
Levis,  actually  succeeded  in  passing  the  fortress  into  the  upper  river 
unharmed,  thereby  cutting  off*  the  water  communication  of  the 
enemy  with  Montreal.  This  was  a  blow  indeed  to  Montcalm,  who 
immediately  detached  600  men  to  proceed  along  the  cliffs,  watch 
the  British  movements,  and  check  any  attempt  to  land. 

Wolfe,  thinking  he  might  get  a  footing  on  the  north  bank 
above  the  city,  sent  orders  to  Townshend,  at  Montmorenci,  for 


KEEPS   HIS   OWN   COUNSEL        451 

nine  companies  of  grenadiers,  with  all  his  howitzers  and  guns. 
Saunders  wrote  Townshend  at  the  same  time,  "  I  have  sent  you 
three  long  boats  for  the  hautbitzers  great  and  small,  and  the  royal 
mortars.  I  shall  soon  send  for  cannon,  as  the  General  designs  to 
make  his  attack  above  the  town."  When  Townshend  had  complied 
with  this  order  all  was  in  readiness. 

On  the  21st,  during  a  miserable  downpour,  Wolfe  crossed  over 
to  the  Point  Levis  batteries.  From  thence,  with  an  escort,  he  pro- 
ceeded westward  along  the  south  shore  to  his  most  advanced  post. 
Embarking  in  a  ship's  boat  he  examined  the  upper  river  for  the 
first  time  carefully.  There  was  little  to  encourage  him.  The  long 
line  of  almost  vertical  cliff*  as  far  as  his  eye  could  reach  appeared 
impregnable.  Revolving  the  situation  silently  in  his  mind  he 
returned  and  spent  the  night  on  board  the  Sutherland,  He  had 
changed  his  mind  about  the  landing.  Not  only  Townshend,  but 
other  officers,  were  puzzled  by  this  apparent  indecision.  "  Within 
the  space  of  five  hours,""  wrote  Gibson  to  Governor  Lawrence,  "  we 
received  at  the  General's  request  three  different  orders  of  con- 
sequence, which  were  contradicted  immediately  after  their  recep- 
tion ...  to  the  no  small  amazement  of  every  one  who  has  taken 
the  liberty  of  thinking  ...  I  am  told  he  asks  no  one's  opinion.*"  ^ 

Here,  at  least,  was  a  General  who  could  keep  his  own  counsel. 

He  doubtless  was  of  the  opinion  that  dividing  and  harassing 
the  enemy  was  of  considerable  advantage  in  war.  Besides,  there 
was  always  the  chance  of  procuring  intelligence ;  so  Wolfe  sent 
Carleton  sixteen  miles  up  the  St.  Lawrence  to  attack  the  small 
town  of  Pointe  aux  Trembles.  Hither  many  French  families  of 
distinction  had  taken  refuge,  and  it  was  rumoured  that  in  addition 
to  stores  and  valuables,  papers  of  consequence  would  be  found.  A 
number  of  prisoners  were  duly  made,  but  as  for  the  papers,  Carleton 
found  only  private  correspondence  which  told  the  General  what  he 
already  knew,  namely,  that  the  inhabitants  of  Quebec  were  very 
sick  of  the  situation.  One  priest  wrote,  "The  English  are  too 
many  for  us ;  and  who  could  have  suspected  it  ?  Part  of  their  fleet 
passed  all  our  batteries,  and  are  riding  in  safety  above  the  capital. 
They  have  made  this  town  so  hot,  that  there  is  but  one  place  left 
where  we  can  with  safety  pay  adoration  to  our  most  gracious, 
but  now  wrathful  and  displeased  God,  who,  we  fear,  has  forsaken 
us.'' 

Amongst  the  hundred  and  fifty  women  so  captured  were  several 
ladies  to  whom  Wolfe,  in  his  role  of  preux  chevalier,  showed  the 
^  Doughty,  ii.  p.  112. 

Q  Q  2 


452    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

most  delicate  attention.  He  invited  them  all  to  dine  in  his  tent 
and  was  in  the  highest  spirits,  exchanging  with  them  reminiscences 
of  Paris  and  the  heme  monde,  and  inquiring  of  them  gaily  when 
M.  le  Marquis  would  take  pity  on  his  generalship  and  come  out 
and  meet  him  in  the  field.  May  not,  on  this  occasion,  a  priest  or 
one  of  the  cultured  ladies  responded  with  the  apt  quotation  from 
ancient  history — "  If  thou  art  a  great  general,  Marius,  come  down 
and  fight.*"  "  If  thou  art  a  great  general.  Silo,  make  me  come  down 
and  fight  "I 

The  next  day  Wolfe  ordered  his  aide-de-camp.  Captain  Hervey 
Smith,  to  escort  the  ladies  to  Quebec,  where  it  must  be  added  they 
were  by  no  means  welcomed,  and  where  the  gallant  captain  was 
subjected  to  somewhat  rude  treatment  at  the  hands  of  the  Quebec 
burghers.^  The  British  General  wrote  at  once  to  Montcalm  to 
complain  of  this  incivility.  Meanwhile,  parties  of  British  infantry 
were  scouring  the  surrounding  country.  One  of  these  parties 
under  Major  Bailing  brought  in  some  two  hundred  and  fifty  male 
and  female  prisoners.  After  being  entertained  by  Brigadier 
Monckton  the  non-combatants  were  escorted  under  a  flag  of  truce 
to  Quebec,  a  proceeding  which  brought  old  Johannes,  the  Town 
Major,  in  a  rage  to  the  British  lines.  It  was  all  very  well  of  M. 
le  General  Wolfe  to  make  war  on  old  men,  women  and  children 
and  return  them  afterwards  to  the  French,  but  M.  Wolfe  ought  to 
be  informed  that  the  people  of  Quebec  had  hardly  enough  food  to 
maintain  themselves.  Wolfe  replied  that  since  M.  le  Vaudreuil 
and  his  staff  viewed  the  British  commander's  leniency  and  generosity 
so  unfavourably,  he  would  not  thenceforward  trouble  himself  to 
restore  any  captives.  He  himself  had  plenty  of  provisions,  and 
would  generously  accommodate  them  in  the  transports. 

One  might  have  thought  the  French  would  have  been  contented 
with  the  sequel  of  their  first  attempt  at  fire-ships.  But  no, — on 
the  27th  they  once  again  tried  to  burn  the  British  fleet.  A  number 
of  schooners,  shallops  and  barges,  were  chained  together  into  a  line 
two  hundred  yards  long,  loaded  with  grenades,  tar-barrels,  shells, 
swivels  and  guns,  full  to  the  muzzle  with  waste  iron  and  metal 
fragments.  As  this  infernal  contrivance  approached  on  the  ebb 
tide  picket-boats  detected  it,  and  the  fearless  bluejackets  instantly 
grappled  with,  and  towed  it  ashore  before  the  slightest  damage 
was  caused.  "  Damme,  Jack,*"  one  was  heard  to  call  out,  as 
he  pulled  hard  at  his  oar,  "  didst  thee  ever  take  hell  in  tow 
before .?'' 

^  Doughty,  vol.  ii.  116. 


A   BOLD   STROKE    NECESSARY       453 

This  sort  of  thing  Wolfe  felt  must  be  stopped.  Next  morning 
he  sent  a  flag  of  truce  to  the  French  commander,  and  this  message, 
"  If  you  presume  to  send  down  any  more  fire-rafts,  they  shall  be 
made  fast  to  the  two  transports  in  which  the  Canadian  prisoners 
are  confined  in  order  that  they  may  perish  by  your  own  base 
invention."     After  that  there  were  no  more  fire-rafts. 

Nevertheless,  w^ar  is  war — and  we  know  that  Wolfe  was  not  the 
man  to  shrink  from  pushing  it  to  extremity.  The  humanest 
warfare  is  that  often  which  ends  it  soonest.  After  a  council  of 
war  held  on  board  Saunders'  flagship,  it  was  decided  to  take  an 
important  and  necessary  step,  however  repugnant  to  feelings  of 
pure  humanity.  On  his  arrival,  it  will  be  recalled,  he  had  issued  a 
proclamation  off*ering  the  Canadians  immunity  for  person  and 
property  if  they  observed  neutrality.  This  had  produced  no  eff*ect. 
Old  men  and  boys  fired  on  his  soldiers  from  ambush,  and  he  had 
daily  evidence  of  the  hostility  of  the  inhabitants.  He  now  issued 
another  proclamation  which  he  hoped  would  prove  more  impressive. 
Unless  by  August  10  the  inhabitants  accepted  his  previous  oflfer  of 
neutrality,  he  swore  he  would  lay  the  whole  country  waste  and 
make  prisoners  of  every  one  he  caught. 

Five  weeks  had  now  slipped  away.  At  the  end  of  those  five 
precious  weeks  Quebec  was  as  far  from  being  taken  as  ever. 
Another  similar  period  of  such  barren  results  and  the  British  fleet 
and  army  would  have  to  retire  in  humiliation.  Already  many  lives 
had  been  lost  and  much  ammunition  spent.  A  bold  stroke  was 
necessary.  Montcalm's  lines  should  be  pierced  at  the  Mont- 
morenci  river.  He  had  tried  for  practicable  fords  above  the  falls 
in  vain ;  but  at  low  tide  there  was  a  possible  passage  below  the 
falls.  It  was  a  desperate  chance,  but  he  must  do  something  to 
justify  the  trust  reposed  in  him  by  Chatham  and  his  countrymen, 
even  at  the  risk  of  life  and  reputation.  "  Standing  still "  was  a 
military  manoeuvre  he  despised,  even  though  at  that  very  moment 
Amherst  and  the  main  army  were  on  their  way  to  reinforce  him. 
At  this  weak  point  in  the  long  French  lines  bordering  the  St. 
Lawrence  the  foe  had  thrown  up  a  four-gun  redoubt  at  the  foot  of 
the  cliffs.  If  he  could  take  this  by  assault  with  his  grenadiers 
and  force  a  way  to  the  high  ground  he  might  precipitate  a  general 
action.  And  he  must  rely  almost  wholly  upon  himself,  for  in  such 
a  shallow  draught  of  water  Saunders  could  not  help  him. 

But  let  Wolfe's  own  pen  describe  the  events  of  that  disastrous 
31st  of  July,  which  we  can  do  by  anticipating  a  portion  of  his 
celebrated  dispatch  to  Pitt. 


454     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

To  William  Pitt. 

Headquarters  of  Montmorenci 

in  the  River  St.  Lawrence. 

Sir, — I  wish  I  could,  upon  this  occasion,  have  the  honour  of 
transmitting  to  you  a  more  favourable  account  of  the  progress 
of  his  Majesty's  arms,  but  the  obstacles  we  have  met  with  in  the 
operations  of  the  campaign  are  much  greater  than  we  had  reason 
to  expect,  or  could  foresee  ;  not  so  much  from  the  number  of  the 
enemy,  (though  superior  to  ours)  as  from  the  natural  strength  of 
the  country,  which  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  seems  wisely  to 
depend  upon.  When  I  learned  that  succours  of  all  kinds  had 
been  thrown  into  Quebec,  that  five  battalions  of  regular  troops 
of  the  colony,  and  every  Canadian  that  was  able  to  carry  arms, 
besides  several  nations  of  savages,  had  taken  the  field  in  a  very 
advantageous  situation,  I  could  not  flatter  myself  that  I  should 
be  able  to  reduce  the  place.  I  sought,  however,  an  occasion 
to  attack  their  army,  knowing  well  that  with  those  troops 
I  saw  able  to  fight,  and  hoping  that  a  victory  might  disperse 
them. 

We  found  them  encamped,  along  the  shore  of  Beauport,  from 
the  river  St.  Charles  to  the  fall  of  Montmorenci  and  intrenched 
in  every  accessible  part.  The  27th  of  June  we  landed  upon  the 
Island  of  Orleans ;  but,  receiving  a  message  from  the  Admiral, 
that  there  was  reason  to  think  that  the  enemy  had  artillery  and 
a  force  upon  the  Point  de  Levi,  I  detached  Brigadier  Monckton 
with  four  battalions  to  drive  them  thence.  He  passed  the  River 
on  the  24th  at  night,  and  marched  the  next  day  to  the  Point ; 
he  obliged  the  enemy's  irregulars  to  retire  and  possessed  himself 
of  that  post ;  the  advanced  parties  on  this  occasion  had  two  or 
three  skirmishes  with  the  Canadians  and  Indians,  with  little  loss 
on  either  side.  Colonel  Carleton  marched  with  a  detachment  to 
to  the  westermost  Point  of  Orleans,  whence  our  operations  were 
likely  to  begin.  It  was  absolutely  necessary  to  possess  these  two 
points,  and  fortify  them ;  because  from  either  the  one  or  the 
other  the  enemy  might  make  it  impossible  for  any  ship  to  lie  in 
the  bason  of  Quebec,  or  even  within  two  miles  of  it.  Batteries 
of  cannon  and  mortars  were  erected  with  great  dispatch  on  the 
Point  of  Levi,  to  bombard  the  town  and  magazines,  and  to 
injure  the  works  and  batteries,  the  enemy  perceiving  these  works 
in  some  forwardness,  passed  the  river  with  some  sixteen  hundred 
men  to  attack  and  destroy  them.  Unluckily  they  fell  into  con- 
fusion, fired  upon  one  another  and  went  back  again,  by  which  we 


DISPATCH   TO   PITT  455 

lost  an  opportunity  of  defeating  this  large  detachment.  The 
effect  of  this  artillery  has  been  so  great,  though  across  the  River, 
that  the  upper  town  is  considerably  damaged  and  the  lower  town 
entirely  destroyed.  The  works,  for  the  security  of  our  hospital 
and  stores  upon  the  isle  of  Orleans,  being  finished,  on  the  9th  of 
July,  at  night,  we  passed  the  North  Channel,  and  encamped  near 
the  enemy's  left,  the  river  Montmorencie  between  us.  The 
next  morning  Captain  Dunk's  company  of  rangers,  posted  in 
a  wood  to  cover  some  workmen,  were  attacked  and  defeated  by  a 
body  of  Indians,  and  had  so  many  killed  and  wounded  as  to  be 
almost  disabled  for  the  rest  of  the  campaign ;  the  enemy  also 
suffered  in  this  affair,  and  were,  in  their  turn,  driven  off  by  the 
nearest  troops.  The  ground  to  the  eastward  of  the  fall  seemed 
to  be,  as  it  really  is,  higher  than  that  on  the  enemy's  side,  and 
to  command  it  in  a  manner  that  might  be  made  useful  to  us. 
There  is  beside  a  ford  below  the  fall,  which  may  be  passed  for 
some  hours  in  the  latter  part  of  the  ebb,  and  beginning  of  the 
flood  tide ;  and  I  had  hopes  that  possibly  means  might  be  found 
of  passing  the  river  above,  so  as  to  fight  the  Marquis  de 
Montcalm  upon  terms  of  less  disadvantage  than  directly 
attacking  his  entrenchments. 

In  reconnoitring  the  river  Montmorenci,  we  found  it  fordable 
at  a  place  about  three  miles  up ;  but  the  opposite  bank  was 
entrenched,  and  so  steep  and  so  woody,  that  it  was  to  no  purpose 
to  attempt  a  passage  there.  The  escort  was  twice  attacked  by 
the  Indians,  who  were  as  often  repulsed ;  but  in  these  rencounters 
we  had  forty  officers  and  men,  killed  and  wounded. 

The  18th  July,  two  men  of  war,  two  armed  sloops,  and  two 
transports,  with  some  troops  on  board,  passed  by  the  town  with- 
out any  loss,  and  got  into  the  upper  river.  This  enabled  me  to 
reconnoitre  the  country  above,  where  I  found  the  same  attention 
on  the  enemy's  side,  and  great  difficulties  on  ours,  arising  from 
the  nature  of  the  ground  and  the  obstacles  to  our  communication 
with  the  fleet.  But  what  I  feared  most  was,  that  if  we  should 
have  landed  between  the  town  and  the  river  of  Cap  Rouge  the 
body  first  landed  could  not  be  reinforced  before  they  were 
attacked  by  the  enemy's  whole  army.  Notwithstanding  these 
difficulties,  I  thought  once  of  attempting  it  at  St.  Michael's  about 
three  miles  above  the  town ;  but  perceiving  that  the  enemy  were 
jealous  of  the  design,  were  preparing  against  it,  and  had  actually 
brought  artillery  and  a  mortar  (which,  being  so  near  to  Quebec, 
they  could  increase  as  they  pleased)  to  play  on  the  shipping,  and 


456    LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

as  it  must  have  been  many  hours  before  we  could  attack  them 
— even  supposing  a  favourable  night  for  the  boats  to  pass  by  the 
town  unhurt, — it  seemed  to  me  so  hazardous  that  I  thought  it 
best  to  desist. 

However,  to  divide  the  enemy's  force,  and  to  draw  their  at- 
tention as  high  up  the  river  as  possible,  and  to  procure  some 
intelligence,  I  sent  a  detachment,  under  the  command  of  Colonel 
Carleton,  to  land  at  the  Point  aux  Trembles,  to  attack  whatever 
he  could  find  there,  bring  off  some  prisoners,  and  all  the  useful 
papers  he  could  get.  I  had  been  informed  that  a  number  of  the 
inhabitants  of  Quebec  had  retired  to  that  place,  and  that 
probably  we  should  find  a  magazine  of  provisions  there.  The 
Colonel  was  fired  upon  by  a  body  of  Indians  the  moment  he 
landed  ;  but  they  were  soon  dispersed  and  driven  into  the  woods  ; 
he  searched  for  magazines  but  to  no  purpose ;  brought  off  some 
prisoners  and  returned  with  little  loss.  After  this  business  I 
came  back  to  Montmorenci,  where  I  found  that  Brigadier 
Townshend  had,  by  a  superior  fire,  prevented  the  French  from 
erecting  a  battery  on  the  bank  of  the  river  whence  they  intended 
to  cannonade  our  camp.  I  now  resolved  to  take  the  first  oppor- 
tunity which  presented  itself  of  attacking  the  enemy,  though 
posted  to  great  advantage,  and  everywhere  prepared  to  receive 
us.  As  the  men  of  war  cannot  for  sufficient  depth  of  water  come 
near  enough  to  the  enemy"'s  entrenchments  to  annoy  them  in  the 
least,  the  Admiral  had  prepared  two  transports,  drawing  but 
little  water,  which  upon  occasion  could  be  run  aground  to  favour 
a  descent.  With  the  help  of  these  vessels,  which  I  understand 
could  be  carried  by  the  tide  close  in  shore,  I  proposed  to  make 
myself  master  of  a  detached  redoubt  near  to  the  water's  edge, 
and  whose  situation  appeared  to  be  out  of  musket  shot  of  the 
entrenchments  upon  the  hill ;  if  the  enemy  supported  this  de- 
tached piece  it  would  necessarily  bring  on  an  engagement,  what 
we  most  wished  for ;  and  if  not,  I  should  have  it  in  my  power 
to  examine  their  situation  so  as  to  be  able  to  determine  where 
best  to  attack  them.  Preparations  were  accordingly  made  for 
an  engagement. 

The  31st  July  in  the  forenoon,  the  boats  of  the  fleet  were 
filled  with  Grenadiers,  and  a  part  of  Brigadier  Monckton's 
brigade  from  the  Point  Levi ;  the  two  brigades  under  the  Briga- 
diers Townshend  and  Murray  were  ordered  to  be  in  readiness  to 
pass  the  ford,  when  it  should  be  thought  necessary.  To  facilitate 
the  passage  of  this  corps,  the  Admiral  had  placed  the  "Centurion  " 


til       ft 


GRENADIERS   HURLED   BACK      457 

in  the  Channel,  so  that  he  might  check  the  fire  of  the  lower  battery 
which  commanded  the  ford ;  this  ship  was  of  great  use,  as  her 
fire  was  very  judiciously  directed.  A  great  quantity  of  Artillery 
stores  were  placed  upon  the  eminence  so  as  to  batter  and  enslade 
the  left  of  their  entrenchments.  From  the  vessel  which  ran 
aground  nearest  in,  I  observed  that  the  redoubt  was  too  much 
commanded  to  be  kept  without  very  great  loss ;  and  the  more,  as 
the  two  armed  ships  could  not  be  brought  near  enough  to  cover 
both  with  their  artillery  and  musketry,  which  I  at  first  conceived 
they  might.  But  as  the  enemy  seemed  in  confusion,  and  we 
were  prepared  for  action,  I  thought  it  a  proper  time  to  make  an 
attempt  upon  their  entrenchment.  Orders  were  sent  to  the 
Brigadier  General  to  be  ready,  with  corps  under  their  command ; 
Brigadiers  Townshend  and  Murray  to  pass  the  ford.  At  a  pro- 
per time  of  the  tide,  the  signal  was  made,  but  in  rowing  towards 
the  shore  many  of  the  boats  grounded  upon  a  ledge  that  runs 
off  a  considerable  distance. 

This  accident  put  us  in  some  disorder,  lost  a  great  deal  of 
time  and  obliged  me  to  send  an  officer  to  stop  Brigadier  Towns- 
hend's  march,  whom  I  then  observed  to  be  in  motion.  While 
the  seamen  were  getting  their  boats  off",  the  enemy  fired  a  num- 
ber of  shot  and  shell,  but  did  no  considerable  damage.  As  soon 
as  this  disorder  could  be  set  to  rights,  and  the  boats  were  ranged 
in  a  proper  manner,  some  of  the  officers  of  the  navy  went  in  with 
me  to  find  a  better  place  to  land.  We  took  one  flat-bottomed 
boat  with  us  to  make  the  experiment ;  and  as  soon  as  we  had 
found  a  fit  part  of  the  shore,  the  troops  were  ordered  to  dis- 
embark, thinking  it  not  too  late  for  the  attempt.  The  thirteen 
companies  of  Grenadiers  and  two  hundred  of  the  second  Royal 
American  battalion  got  first  on  shore.  The  Grenadiers  were 
ordered  to  form  themselves  into  four  distinct  bodies,  and  to 
begin  the  attack,  supported  by  Brigadier  Monckton's  corps,  as 
soon  as  the  troops  had  missed  the  fort,  and  were  at  hand  to 
assist,  but,  whether  from  the  noise  and  hurry  at  landing,  or 
from  some  other  cause  the  Grenadiers  instead  of  forming  them- 
selves as  they  were  directed,  ran  on  impetuously  towards  the 
enemy's  entrenchments,  in  the  utmost  disorder  and  confusion, 
without  waiting  for  the  corps  which  was  to  sustain  them,  and 
join  in  the  attack.  Brigadier  Monckton  was  not  landed  and 
Brigadier  To\vnshend  was  still  at  a  considerable  distance,  though 
upon  his  march  to  join  us,  in  very  great  order.  The  Grenadiers 
were  checked  by  the  enemy's  first  fire,  and  obliged  to  shelter 


458     LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

themselves  in  or  about  the  redoubt,  which  the  French  abandoned 
upon  their  approach.  In  this  situation  they  continued  for  some 
time,  unable  to  form  under  so  hot  a  fire  and  having  many 
gallant  officers  wounded,  who,  careless  of  their  persons,  had  been 
solely  intent  upon  their  duty.  I  saw  the  absolute  necessity  of 
calling  them  off  that  they  might  form  themselves  behind 
Brigadier  Monckton's  corps,  which  was  now  landed,  and  drawn 
up  on  the  beach,  in  extreme  good  order.  By  this  new  accident, 
and  this  second  delay,  it  was  near  night,  and  a  sudden  storm 
came  on,  and  the  tide  began  to  make,  so  that  I  thought  it  most 
advisable  not  to  persevere  in  so  difficult  an  attack,  lest,  in  case  of 
.  a  repulse,  the  retreat  of  Brigadier  Townshend's  corps  might  be 
hazardous  and  uncertain.  Our  artillery  had  a  great  effect  upon 
the  enemy's  left,  where  Brigadiers  Townshend  and  Murray  were 
to  have  attacked ;  and  it  is  probable  that,  if  those  accidents  I 
have  spoken  of  had  not  happened,  we  should  have  penetrated 
there,  whilst  our  left  or  centre,  more  remote  from  our  artillery, 
must  have  borne  all  the  violence  of  their  musketry.  The  French 
did  not  attempt  to  interrupt  our  march.  Some  of  their  savages 
came  down  to  murder  such  wounded  as  could  not  be  brought 
off,  and  to  scalp  the  dead,  as  their  custom  is.  The  place  where 
the  attack  was  intended,  has  these  advantages  over  all  others 
here  about ;  our  artillery  could  be  brought  into  use,  the  greater 
part,  or  even  the  whole  of  the  troops,  might  act  at  once,  and  the 
retreat  in  case  of  a  repulse,  was  secure,  at  least  for  a  certain  time 
of  the  tide ;  neither  one  nor  other  of  these  advantages  can  any- 
where else  be  found.  The  enemy  were  indeed  posted  upon  a 
commanding  eminence ;  the  beach  upon  which  the  troops  were 
drawn  up  was  of  deep  mud,  with  holes,  and  cut  by  several 
gullies ;  the  hill  to  be  ascended  very  steep,  and  not  everywhere 
practicable ;  the  enemy  numerous  in  their  entrenchments  and 
their  fire  hot.  If  the  attack  had  succeeded,  our  loss  must 
certainly  have  been  great,  and  theirs  inconsiderable,  from  the 
shelter  which  the  neighbouring  woods  afforded  them.  The  river 
St.  Charles  remained  still  to  be  passed  before  the  town  could  be 
invested.  All  these  circumstances  I  considered,  but  the  desire 
to  act  in  conformity  to  the  King''s  intentions  enduced  me  to 
make  this  trial,  persuaded  that  a  victorious  army  finds  no 
difficulties. 

This  staggering  reverse  at  Montmorenci  Falls  was  a  terrible 
blow  to  the  young  Commander.     He  had  never  intended  it  as  a 


A   SERIOUS   REVERSE  459 

real  attack  on  the  enemy's  position,  but  as  a  challenge  for  him  to 
come  out  of  his  trenches  and  fight.  He  calculated  on  being  met, 
not  by  grenadiers,  but  by  the  Canadian  militia.  When  by  reason 
of  the  delay  in  carrying  the  redoubt  he  discovered  that  the  weight 
of  Montcalm's  army  of  veterans  was  being  thrown  on  his  handful 
of  men,  he  saw  that  the  chances  were  greatly  against  him.  But 
with  Wolfe,  as  has  been  well  said,  for  all  his  science,  "  the  moral 
force  in  warfare  was  always  for  him  the  master  element.*"  And 
the  worst  of  it  was  that  he  had  infected  his  men  with  his  own 
impetuosity.^  He  had  lost  443  men  killed  and  wounded,  including 
thirty-three  officers,  chiefly  grenadiers.  No  wonder  that  the 
English  camp  that  night  was  sunk  in  gloom  or  that  the  French 
rejoiced.  "I  have  no  more  anxiety  about  Quebec,*"  wrote 
Vaudreuil. 

That  night  the  son-owful  commander,  upon  whose  delicate  frame 
sickness  was  already  beginning  to  lay  a  dread  hand,  went  from  tent 
to  tent  visiting  his  wounded  officers.  He  himself  had  been  thrice 
struck  by  splinters  and  his  cane  had  been  dashed  from  his  grasp  by 
a  round  shot.  But  he  never  thought  of  himself  as  long  as  he 
could  stand  upright.  Those  who  were  able  to  limp  to  the 
GeneraFs  tent  he  invited  to  sup  with  him,  and  more  than  one 
aspiring  ensign  lived  to  describe  the  sad  pale  face  and  tender 
smile  of  their  leader  as  he  sat  at  the  head  of  the  board.  When 
all  had  departed  and  he  was  left  alone,  he  called  for  paper  and 
vented  his  feelings  of  bitterness  in  the  following  manifesto,  which 
on  the  morrow  was  read  out  to  the  troops. 

"  The  check  which  the  Grenadiers  met  with  yesterday,  will,  it 
is  hoped,  be  a  lesson  to  them  for  the  time  to  come ;  such  impetuous, 
irreg^ilar  and  unsoldierlike  proceedings  destroy  all  order,  make  it 
impossible  for  their  commanders  to  form  any  disposition  for  an 
attack,  and  put  it  out  of  the  General's  power  to  execute  his 
plan. 

"  The  Grenadiers  could  not  suppose  that  they  alone  could  beat 
the  French  army,  and  therefore  it  was  necessary  that  the  corps 
under  Brigadier  Monckton  and  Brigadier  Townshend  should  have 
time  to  join,  that  the  attack  might  be  general ;  the  very  first  fire 
of  the  enemy  was  sufficient  to  repulse  men  who  had  lost  all  sense 
of  order  and   military  discipline ;    Amherst's  and   the  Highland 

1  ''  I  am  convinced,"  observes  Townshend,  '^  that  the  cause  of  this  disaster, 
as  in  so  many  other  cases,  was  the  burning  thirst-for  battle  on  the  part  of  the 
troops,  officers  and  men  like,  such  as  one  sees  in  men,  who,  never  having 
been  on  active  service  before,  are  impatient  to  find  themselves  engaged." — 
Military  Life  of  the  Marquess  Toumshend,  p.  196. 


460     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

regiments  alone,  by  the  soldierlike  and  cool  manner  they  were 
formed  in,  would  undoubtedly  have  beat  back  the  whole  Canadian 
army,  if  they  had  ventured  to  attack  them. 

"  The  loss,  however,  is  inconsiderable,  and  may  be  easily 
repaired,  when  a  favourable  opportunity  offers,  if  the  men  will 
show  a  proper  attention  to  their  officers."""*  ^ 

"  By  failure  his  military  error,"*"*  says  Warburton,  "  had  been 
thrown  into  strong  light,  and  yet  it  is  probable  that  he  would  have 
succeeded  but  for  a  strange  adversity  of  circumstances."*"* 

There  is  extant  a  long  letter  of  Wolfe's,  concerning  this  very 
battle  of  Montmorenci,  of  the  highest  interest  and  importance.  It 
must  be  remembered,  however,  that  it  was  penned  in  a  moment  of 
great  physical  weakness  and  depression,  which  accounts  for  the 
tone  of  the  close  of  the  letter.  He  had  drafted  his  dispatch  to 
Pitt  and  sent  a  copy  to  Saunders,  who  took  exception  to  one  or 
two  passages  relating  to  the  "  cat-boats,"***  or  catamarans,  and  naval 
responsibility  for  the  affair,  suggesting  emendation. 

To  Vice- Admiral  Saundees. 

Banks  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  ^Qth  August,  1759. 

Dear  Sir, — I  did  not  see  the  letter  you  did  me  the  honour 
to  write  till  just  now,  nor  indeed  could  I  have  answered  it  before, 
if  Major  Barre  had  shown  it  me.  I  shall  leave  out  that  part 
of  my  letter  to  Mr.  Pitt  which  you  object  to,  although  the 
matter  of  fact  to  the  best  of  my  recollection,  is  strictly  as  I  have 
stated  it.  I  am  sensible  of  my  own  errors  in  the  course  of  the 
campaign ;  see  clearly  wherein  I  have  been  deficient ;  and  think 
a  little  more  or  less  blame  to  a  man  that  must  necessarily  be 
ruined,  of  little  or  no  consequence.  If  you  had  recollected  the 
purport  of  my  letter  you  would  not  have  found  "  that  it  throws 
any  difficulties  I  met  with  in  landing  on  the  two  cats  not  being 
placed  so  to  annoy  the  two  small  batteries  with  their  great 
guns."*"*  On  the  contrary  the  cats  did  annoy  the  upper  battery 
with  their  great  guns,  and  performed  that  part  of  the  service  as 
well  as  could  be  expected ;  and  yet  that  battery  was  not  aban- 
doned by  the  enemy,  but  continued  firing  till  the  Grenadiers  ran 
(like  blockheads)  up  to  it.    However,  its  fire  was  of  no  consequence 

^  ''Amongst  those  who  shared  his  confidence,"  says  Smollett,  ''he  was 
often  seen  to  sigh,  and  he  was  often  heard  to  complain ;  and  even  in  the 
transports  of  his  chagrin  declare  that  he  would  never  return  without  success 
to  be  exposed,  as  other  unfortunate  commanders  had  been,  to  the  censure  and 
reproach  of  an  ignorant  populace." — Hist,  of  England. 


COOK   EXPLAINS   TO   SAUNDERS    461 

and  not  worth  mentioning,  nor  the  least  impediment  to  landing. 
Mr.  Cook  ^  said  he  believed  the  cats  could  be  carried  within  40 
or  50  yards  of  the  redoubts.  I  told  him  at  the  time,  that  I  would 
readily  compound  for  150  or  200  yards,  which  would  have  been 
near  enough,  had  the  upper  redoubt  been  as  far  from  the  enemy's 
entrenchments  as  it  appeared  from  our  camp  to  be,  and  had  I 
judged  it  advisable  to  attack  it  with  a  view  to  lodge  in  it,  which 
I  did  not  upon  seeing  that  it  was  too  much  commanded.  You 
will  please  to  consider  the  difference  between  landing  at  high 
water  with  four  companies  of  Grenadiers  to  attack  a  redoubt 
under  the  protection  of  the  artillery  of  a  vessel,  and  landing  part 
of  an  army  to  attack  the  enemy''s  entrenchments.  For  this  last 
business,  a  junction  of  our  corps  was  necessary ;  and  to  join,  the 
water  must  fall  a  certain  degree.  I  gave  up  the  first  point  (that 
of  the  redoubt)  upon  finding  my  mistake  as  to  the  distance  from 
the  entrenchment,  and  determined  upon  the  latter,  (which  I 
always  had  in  view)  upon  observing  the  enemy's  disorder,  and 
remarking  their  situation  much  better  than  I  ever  could  do 
before.  The  fire  of  the  lower  redoubt  was  so  smart  during  the 
time  that  we  were  on  board  the  "RusselP'  (I  think  it  was)  that,  as 
neither  her  guns,  nor  the  guns  of  the  other  cat  could  be  brought 
to  bear  against  it,  I  thought  fit  to  order  the  Grenadiers  out  of 
her,  by  which  I  saved  many  lives.  I  was  no  less  than  three  times 
struck  with  the  splinters  in  that  ship  and  had  my  stick  knocked 
out  of  my  hand  with  the  cannon-ball  while  I  was  on  board 
reconnoitring  the  position  and  movements  of  the  enemy ;  and 
yet  you  say  in  your  letter  they  did  (the  cats)  great  execution 
against  the  two  small  batteries,  and  on  your  first  landing  you  did 
not  lose  a  man. 

With  regard  to  the  "  Centurion,"  I  am  ready  to  do  justice  to 
Cap.  Mantle ;  but  I  am  very  sure,  whatever  his  merit  may  be,  the 
approbation  would  be  more  to  the  purpose  coming  from  you 
than  from  me.  In  reality  the  position  of  the  ship  was  in  con- 
sequence of  your  orders,  and  I  am  very  sure  that,  if  you  could 
have  placed  the  whole  fleet  so  as  to  have  been  useful  to  us,  you 
would  have  done  it.  The  "Centurion"  had  no  enemy  to  encounter ; 
her  position  was  assigned,  and  her  guns  were  fired  judiciously. 
The  fire  of  that,  and  of  the  four-gun  battery  near  the  water-side, 

1  Later  the  famous  Captain  Cook^  then  master  of  the  Mercury.  Cook  took 
the  soundings  of  the  channel  between  the  Isle  of  Orleans  and  the  north  shore, 
facing  the  French  camp,  preparatory  to  its  being  occupied  by  Saunders'  ships, 
an  arduous  and  risky  operation,  accomplished  entirely  at  night. 


462    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

together  with  the  want  of  ammunition,  kept  their  lower  battery 
silent  for  some  time,  but  yet  we  received  many  shot  from  that 
battery  at  landing ;  and  Brigadier  Townshend's  corps  was  fired 
upon  particularly  in  returning  over  the  ford,  though  with  little 
damage. 

When  I  had  resolved  to  attack  the  French  army  I  sent  Mr. 
Leslie  to  see  how  the  water  fell,  that  I  might  land  at  a  proper 
time  to  join  with  Townshend,  and  when  he  made  me  his  report, 
I  made  the  signal  to  Col.  Burton.  Many  of  the  boats  ran  upon 
the  ledge ;  and  the  delay  occasioned  by  the  accident  was  such, 
that  I  sent  Captain  Smith,  my  aide-de-camp,  to  stop  Townshend, 
who  was  then  crossing  the  ford ;  and  yet,  Sir,  you  assert  that 
there  was  no  delay  by  this  accident.  None  indeed  that  would 
have  had  any  consequence  if  the  strange  behaviour  of  the 
Grenadiers  had  not  lost  us  more  time  and  brought  on  the  night, 
and  perhaps  very  luckily  for  the  army,  considering  the  dis- 
advantageous nature  of  the  attack.  I  remember  you  did  me  the 
honour  to  call  to  me  from  your  boat  to  go  in  and  see  for  a 
landing  place ;  and  I  remember  some  gentleman''s  calling  out  at 
the  same  time  from  the  boat  that  it  was  a  proper  time  to  land ; 
and  you  may  remember  I  went  in,  and  made  the  experiment 
with  a  flat-bottomed  boat,  and  one  of  the  captains  (I  believe 
Capt.  Chads,)  and  when  we  had  found  what  we  sought  for,  I 
desired  him  to  bring  the  boats  forward.  The  rest  makes  up  the 
remaining  part  of  the  story  of  that  unlucky  day ;  the  blame  of 
which  I  take  entirely  upon  my  own  shoulders,  and  expect  to 
suffer  for  it.  Accidents  cannot  be  helped.  As  much  of  the  plan 
as  was  defective  falls  upon  me ;  and  it  is,  I  think,  a  matter  of 
no  great  consequence  whether  the  cats  fired  well  or  ill;  were 
well  or  ill  placed;  of  no  great  consequence  whether  an  hour  or 
two  were  or  were  not  lost  by  the  boats  grounding ;  and  of  as 
little  consequence  whether  the  "  Centurion's  "  gunner  directed  his 
shot  well  or  ill.  In  none  of  these  circumstances  the  essential 
matter  resides.  The  great  fault  of  that  day  consists  in  putting 
too  many  men  into  boats,  who  might  have  been  landed  the  day 
before,  and  might  have  crossed  the  ford  with  certainty,  while  a 
small  body  only  remained  afloat ;  and  the  superfluous  boats  of 
the  fleet  employed  in  a  feint  that  might  divide  the  enemy's 
force.  A  man  sees  his  error  often  too  late  to  remedy.  My  ill 
state  of  health  hinders  me  from  executing  my  own  plan ;  it  is 
of  too  desperate  a  nature  to  order  others  to  execute.  The 
Generals  seem  to  think  alike  as  to  the  operations,  I,  therefore, 


BRIGADIER-GENERAL    HON.    JAMES    MURRAY 

From  a  draicing  hy  G'dlray 


AMHERST'S   ADVANCE  463 

join  with  them,  and  perhaps  we  may  find  some  opportunity  to 
strike  a  blow.^ 

I  am,  dear  Sir,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe. 

He  had  failed  at  Montmorenci,  but  Wolfe  did  not  believe  his 
plan  unsound.  He  would  try  again  under  more  favourable  con- 
ditions. He  concerted  with  Saunders  a  plan  of  action  for  the 
upper  river.  Holmes,  in  command  of  the  flotilla  beyond  Quebec, 
was  to  act  in  conjunction  with  Murray,  who  was  given  1,200  men 
to  destroy  the  French  shipping  up  stream,  and  to  harass  the 
enemy  on  shore  as  much  as  possible.  Murray  found  the  whole  line 
of  cliff^s  on  the  alert.  Two  attempts  did  he  make  to  land,  but 
each  time  was  met  by  a  fire  too  hot  to  stand,  but  at  the  third 
attempt  he  surprised  the  river  post,  pushed  on  and  captured  the 
village  of  Dechambault.  Here  the  French,  in  conformity  with 
the  GeneraFs  manifesto,  were  made  to  feel  his  hand.  But  the 
greatest  advantage  he  obtained  was  to  intercept  some  important 
letters,  which  told  of  the  occupation  of  Crown  Point  by  Amherst, 
and  Johnson's  capture  of  Niagara.  This  was  good  news  indeed, 
and,  as  there  was  nothing  else  to  be  done,  Murray  hastened  back 
to  Wolfe.  Scarcely  was  his  back  turned  when  Montcalm  arrived 
in  Dechambault — too  late ! 

1  "  This  failure/'  remarks  Doughty,  ''  caused  a  temporary  abatement  of 
the  enthusiastic  regard  in  which  Wolfe  was  held  by  officers  and  soldiers 
alike."  There  is  nothing  whatever  to  justify  such  an  assertion.  Wolfe's 
general  orders  sufficiently  explained  the  cause  of  the  disaster  to  all.  The 
Grenadiers  alone  were  to  blame. 


XX 

THE  FINAL  PLAN 

Good  tidings  could  not  have  come  to  Wolfe  at  a  more  fitting 
moment.  Fatigue,  disappointment,  and  disease  were  overcoming 
his  body,  if  not  his  spirit,  and  this  revived  him. 

At  mess  one  day  one  of  his  officers  spoke  of  one  whose  delicate 
constitution  might  be  an  obstacle  to  his  career.  "Don't  talk  to 
me  of  constitution,"  he  said,  "  he  has  spirits,  and  spirits  will  carry 
a  man  through  anything." 

Yet  he  soon  saw  that  there  was  little  or  no  hope  of  succour 
from  Amherst  and  Johnson.  All  this  time  the  bombardment  of 
Quebec  never  ceased.  On  the  morning  of  August  10,  a  shell 
ignited  some  brandy  in  a  wine-cellar,  the  flames  spread  and 
quickly  the  whole  of  that  part  of  the  city,  including  the  church 
of  Notre  Dame  des  Victoires,  was  destroyed.  Nor  did  a  day  pass 
without  a  bloody  skirmish  between  British  and  Canadians  or 
Indians,  accompanied  by  the  horrible  details  of  Redskin  butchery. 
Daily,  too,  prisoners  were  brought  into  camp.  The  flames  caused 
by  British  torches  fulfilled  Wolfe's  threats  to  the  letter  as  they  rose 
over  cottage  and  barn.  The  corn  withered  on  its  stalks,  and  there 
were  no  reapers,  save  where  British  gun  or  musket  could  not 
carry.  The  townspeople  of  the  beleaguered  city  were  in  a  sore 
plight;  well  they  knew  that  if  anything  happened  to  their  sup- 
plies from  Montreal  they  would  perish  of  hunger.  To  hold  out 
a  month  or  two  longer  would  ensure  their  safety  for  that  winter, 
perhaps  for  many  winters. 

On  August  19  Captain  Smith  came  sorrowfully  out  of  the 
low  stone  farmhouse  that  served  the  General  as  headquarters  at 
Montmorenci,  to  announce  that  the  General  could  not  rise  that 
day.  The  news  spread  like  wild-fire  through  the  whole  army, 
causing  the  most  anxious  concern  through  all  ranks.  There 
Wolfe  lay  stretched  on  his  rude  military  cot,  racked  with  pain 
and  fever  for  days.  He  seems  no  longer  to  have  cherished  any 
illusions  as  to  his  own  health.  "  I  know  perfectly  well,"  he  said 
to  his  surgeon,  "  you  cannot  cure  my  complaint ;  but  patch  me 
up  so  that  I  may  be  able  to  do  my  duty  for  the  next  few  days, 

464 


SERIOUSLY    ILL  465 

and  I  shall  be  content.""  He  told  those  about  him  he  would 
"cheerfully  sacrifice  a  leg  or  an  arm  to  be  in  possession  of 
Quebec."^  In  the  midst  of  his  illness  his  mind  was  torn  with 
apprehension.  Upon  him  alone  hung  the  fate  of  the  campaign ; 
he  knew  the  disposition  of  some  of  the  officers  towards  him, 
especially  since  the  affair  at  Montmorenci.  The  absence  of 
Murray  on  his  expedition  to  the  upper  river  fretted  him.  To 
Monckton,  who  wrote  that  he  heard  firing,  he  sent  a  note. 

To  Brigadier-General  Mongkton. 

19^  August,  1769. 
Dear  Sir, — ^The  cannon  you  heard  is  probably  what  you 
imagine,  a  vessel  coming  down  to  open  the  communication. 
The  Admiral  has  heard  a  different  account  of  the  woman's 
report.  He  sent  for  the  man  on  board  to  examine  him ;  and 
he  there  declared  that  she  had  spoken  handsomely  of  the  treat- 
ment that  she  and  the  rest  had  met  with.  They  are  certainly 
distressed — it  is  everybody*'s  story,  that  leaves  the  army. 

On  languit  dans  ce  Camp  the  deserters  say.  What  shall  I  do 
with  this  Cotton  ^  Better  send  him  on  board  and  let  the 
Admiralty  settle  his  affairs  hereafter.  Our  batteries  alarm  them, 
you  may  be  assured. 

I  wish  we  had  Murray's  corps  back,  that  we  might  be 
ready  to  decide  it  with  'em. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  much  regard, 
Dear  Sir, 

Your  faithful  and  humble  servant, 

James  Wolfe. 

He  had  information  that  the  enemy's  force  at  Beauport  was 
weakened  through  Montcalm,  Bougainville,  and  Levis  all  being 
absent.  In  the  midst  of  his  illness  he  dictated  another  letter  to 
Monckton. 

To  Hon.  Robert  Monckton. 

Montmorency  J  22nd  August,  1759. 
Dear  Brigadier, — Murray,  by  his  long  stay  above  and  by 
detaining  all  our  boats,  is  actually  master  of  the  operations — 
or  rather  puts  an  entire  stop  to  them.     I  have  wi'it  twice  to 
recall  him,  but  you  tell  me  the  midshipman  is  yet  at  his  old 
post.     I  intend  to  burn  all  the  country  from  Camarasca  to  the 
Point  of  Levis.     Scott's  Rangers  and  some  volunteers  are  to 
1  Knox,  vol.  ii.  p.  29. 
H  H 


466     LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

execute  a  part  of  this.  You  know  I  promised  Mr.  Cameron 
the  first  vacancy  in  the  army,  or  no  recommendation  whatever 
should  have  interfered  with  yours  in  your  own  regiment. 
The  next  ensigncy  Mr.  Tren  shall  have,  unless  you  choose  a 
lieutenancy  (if  a  vacancy  happen)  should  be  given  to  poor 
Engel  who  has  been  hardly  used. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be  with  great  esteem, 
Dear  Sir, 

Your  most  obedient  and  humble  servant, 

J.  Wolfe. 

On  the  26th  Murray  got  back,  but  the  General  was  prostrated, 
and  could  then  do  nothing.  In  view  of  this  serious  state  of  affairs, 
Wolfe  requested  his  brigadiers  to  consult  together,  dictating  with 
difficulty  the  following  letter — 

To  THE  Brigadiers. 

That  the  public  service  may  not  suffer  by  the  General's 
indisposition,  he  begs  the  Brigadiers  will  meet  and  consult  for 
the  public  utility  and  advantage,  and  consider  of  the  best  method 
to  attack  the  enemy.  If  the  French  army  be  attacked  and 
defeated,  the  General  concludes  that  the  town  would  immedi- 
ately surrender,  because  he  does  not  find  they  have  any  provisions 
in  that  place.  The  General  is  of  opinion  that  the  army  should 
be  attacked  in  preference  to  the  place,  because  of  the  difficulties 
of  penetrating  from  the  Lower  to  the  Upper  Town ;  in  which 
attempt,  neither  the  guns  of  the  shipping  nor  our  own  batteries 
could  be  of  much  use. 

There  appear  to  be  three  methods  of  attacking  the  army — 

First.  In  dry  weather,  a  large  detachment  may  march  in  a 
day  and  night,  so  as  to  arrive  at  Beauport, — fording  the  Mont- 
morenci  eight  or  nine  miles  up, — before  day  in  the  morning. 
It  is  likely  they  would  be  discovered  upon  this  march  on  both 
sides  of  the  river.  If  such  detachment  penetrates  to  the  intrench- 
ments,  and  the  rest  of  the  troops  are  ready,  the  consequence  is 
plain. 

Second.  If  the  troops  encamped  here  [on  the  north  shore] 
pass  the  ford  with  the  falling  water,  and  in  the  night  march 
on  directly  towards  the  point  of  Beauport,  the  light  infantry 
have  a  good  chance  to  get  up  the  woody  hill ;  trying  different 
places  and  moving  quick  to  the  right,  would  soon  discover  a 
proper  place  for  the  rest.     The  upper  redoubt  must  be  attacked, 


BRIGADIERS'    REPLY  467 

and  kept  by  a  company  of  Grenadiers.  Brigadier  Monckton 
must  be  ready,  off  the  point  of  Beauport,  to  land  where  our 
people  get  up  the  hill ;  for  which  signals  may  be  appointed. 

Third.  All  the  chosen  troops  of  the  army  may  attack  at 
Beauport  at  low  water.  A  diversion  must  be  made  across  the 
ford  an  hour  before  the  second  attack. 

N.B. — For  the  first  attack,  it  is  sufficient  if  the  water  begins 
to  fall  a  little  before  daylight,  or  about  it.  For  the  other  two, 
it  will  be  best  to  have  the  low  water  half-an-hour  before  day. 
The  General  thinks  the  country  should  be  ruined  and  destroyed, 
as  much  as  can  be  done  consistent  with  a  more  capital  operation. 

N.B. — There  are  guides  in  the  army  for  the  detachment 
question. 

The  brigadiers  accordingly  met  at  Monckton"*s  quarters  on 
Point  Levis,  afterwards  consulting  Saunders  on  board  his  flagship. 
The  following  reply  to  Wolfe's  letter  was  concerted — 

Point  Levi,  August  29,  1759. 

Having  met  this  day  in  consequence  of  General  Wolfe's 
desire,  to  consult  together  for  the  public  utility  and  advantage, 
and  to  consider  of  the  best  method  of  attacking  the  enemy ;  and 
having  read  His  Majesty's  private  instructions  which  the  General 
was  pleased  to  communicate  to  us ;  and  having  considered  some 
propositions  of  his  with  respect  to  our  future  operations,  we 
think  it  our  duty  to  offisr  our  opinion  as  follows — 

The  natural  strength  of  the  enemy's  situation  between  the 
rivers  St.  Charles  and  Montmorenci,  now  improved  by  all  the 
art  of  their  engineers,  makes  the  defeat  of  their  army,  if  attacked 
there,  very  doubtful.  The  advantage  which  their  easy  com- 
munication along  the  shore  gives  over  oiu*  attack  from  boats, 
and  by  the  ford  of  the  river  Montmorenci,  is  evident  from  late 
experience ;  and  it  appears  to  us  that  that  part  of  the  army 
which  is  proposed  to  march  through  the  woods  nine  miles  up 
to  Montmorenci,  to  surprise  their  camp,  is  exposed  to  certain 
discovery,  and  consequently  to  the  disadvantage  of  a  constant 
wood  fight.  But  allowing  that  we  could  get  a  footing  on  the 
Beauport  side,  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  will  still  have  it  in  his 
power  to  dispute  the  passage  of  the  river  St.  Charles,  till  the 
place  is  supplied  with  provisions  from  the  ships  and  magazines 
above,  from  which  it  appears  they  draw  their  subsistence. 

We  are  therefore  of  opinion  that  the  most  probable  method 
of  striking  an  effectual  blow  is  to  bring  the  troops  to  the  south 

H  H  2 


468     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF    WOLFE 

shore,  and  to  carry  the  operations  above  the  town.  If  we  can 
estabhsh  ourselves  on  the  north  shore,  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm 
must  fight  us  on  our  own  terms ;  we  are  between  him  and  his 
provisions,  and  between  him  and  the  army  opposing  General 
Amherst.  If  he  gives  us  battle  and  we  defeat  him,  Quebec,  and 
probably  all  Canada,  will  be  our  own,  which  is  beyond  any 
advantage  we  can  expect  by  the  Beauport  side ;  and  should  the 
enemy  pass  over  the  river  St.  Charles  with  force  sufficient  to 
oppose  this  operation,  we  may  still,  with  more  ease  and  proba- 
bility of  success,  execute  the  General's  third  proposition  (which 
is,  in  our  opinion,  the  most  eligible),  or  undertake  anything  else 
on  the  Beauport  shore,  necessarily  weakened  by  the  detachments 
made  to  oppose  us  from  the  town. 

r  MONCKTON, 

(Signed)  Brigadiers-!  Townshend, 

[  Murray. 

Thus  all  three  of  Wolfe's  plans  were  summarily  rejected, 
including  his  cherished  one  of  Beauport.  Murray  and  Townshend 
took  the  letter  to  Wolfe  at  Montmorenci,  which  camp  it  was 
proposed  that  he  should  abandon.  Being  ill,  he  could  do  nothing. 
At  the  same  time  he  saw  clearly  that  the  fact  of  Holmes'  and  the 
ships  getting  up  the  river  had  changed  the  situation  completely. 
And  the  plan  of  the  brigadiers  for  carrying  the  attack  up  the  river 
was,  although  far  from  original  with  them,  as  he  had  contemplated 
it  from  the  first,  very  different  from  that  which  was  afterwards 
successfully  adopted  by  Wolfe. 

On  the  31st  the  Admiral  came  on  shore  and  Wolfe  and  he  and 
the  three  brigadiers  had  a  consultation.  That  night  the  evacuation 
of  Montmorenci  began,  and  Saunders  dispatched  a  small  squadron 
up  stream  past  Quebec.  Wolfe  evacuated  in  his  own  way,  doing 
it  by  degrees  so  as  to  tempt  Montcalm  into  a  trap.^ 

In  the  last  letter  which  he  wrote  his  widowed  mother  he  reveals 
plainly,  not  his  physical  illness,  but  his  dejection  of  mind — 

To  HIS  Mother. 

Banks  of  the  St.  Lawrence,  2>\st  August,  1759. 
Dear  Madam, — My  writing  to  you  will  convince  you  that 
no  personal  evils,  worse  than  defeats  and  disappointments,  have 

*  ''  Wolfe,  as  he  withdrew  his  force  from  Montmorenci,  had  in  fact  laid  a 
cunning  trap  for  him — his  last  despairing  effort  to  bring  on  an  action  in  his 
own  way." — Corbett,  ii.  p.  457. 


«THE    WARY    OLD    FELLOW       469 

fallen  upon  me.  The  enemy  puts  nothing  to  risk,  and  I  can't 
in  conscience,  put  the  whole  army  to  risk.  My  antagonist  has 
wisely  shut  himself  up  in  inaccessible  entrenchments,  so  that  I 
can't  get  at  him  without  spilling  a  torrent  of  blood,  and  that 
perhaps  to  little  purpose.  The  Marquis  de  Montcalm  is  at  the 
head  of  a  great  number  of  bad  soldiers  and  I  am  at  the  head  of 
a  small  number  of  good  ones,  that  wish  for  nothing  so  much  as 
to  fight  him  ;  but  the  wary  old  fellow  avoids  an  action  doubtful 
of  the  behaviour  of  his  army.  People  must  be  of  the  profession 
to  understand  the  disadvantages  and  difficulties  we  labour  under, 
arising  from  the  uncommon  natural  strength  of  the  country. 

I  approve  entirely  of  my  father's  disposition  of  his  affairs, 
though  perhaps  it  may  interfere  a  little  matter  with  my  plan  of 
quitting  the  service,  which  I  am  determined  to  do  the  first 
opportunity, — I  mean  so  as  not  to  be  absolutely  distressed  in 
circumstances,  nor  burdensome  to  you,  or  to  any  body  else. 

I  wish  you  much  health,  and  am,  dear  Madam, 

Yoiu*  obedient  and  affectionate  son, 

Jam  :  Wolfe. 

If  any  sums  of  money  are  paid  to  you,  of  what  is  due  my 
father  from  the  Government,  let  me  recommend  to  you,  not  to 
meddle  with  the  funds,  but  keep  it  for  your  support  until  better 
times. 

We  may  now  continue  the  narration  of  affairs  since  Mont- 
morenci  in  Wolfe's  own  letter  to  the  Prime  Minister. 

To  William  Pitt  (continued). 

The  enemy  have  been  fortifying  ever  since  with  care,  so  as  to 
make  a  second  attempt  still  more  dangerous.  Immediately  after 
this  check  I  sent  Brigadier  Murray  above  the  town,  with 
twelve  hundred  men,  directing  him  to  assist  Rear- Admiral 
Holmes  in  the  destruction  of  the  French  ships  if  they  could  be  got 
at,  in  order  to  open  a  communication  with  General  Amherst. 
The  Brigadier  was  to  seek  every  favourable  opportunity  of 
fighting  some  of  the  enemy's  detachments,  provided  he  could  do 
it  upon  tolerable  terms  ;  and  to  use  all  the  means  in  his  power 
to  provoke  them  to  attack  him.  He  made  two  different  attempts 
to  land  upon  the  north  shore,  without  success  ;  but  in  a  third  was 
more  fortunate.  He  landed  unexpectedly  at  Dechambault,  and 
burned  a  mag^ine  there,  in  which  were  some  provisions,  some 
ammunition,   and    all    the    spare   stores,   clothing,   arms,   and 


470    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

baggage  of  their  army.  Finding  that  their  ships  were  not  to  be 
got  at,  and  little  prospect  of  bringing  the  enemy  to  battle  he 
reported  his  situation  to  me.  I  ordered  him  to  rejoin  the  army. 
The  prisoners  he  took  informed  him  of  the  surrender  of  Niagara  ; 
and  we  discovered  by  intercepted  letters,  that  the  enemy,  having 
abandoned  Carillon  and  Crown  Point,  were  retired  to  the  isle  au 
Noix ;  and  that  General  Amherst  was  making  preparations  to 
pass  the  Lake  Champlain,  to  fall  upon  Monsieur  de  Bourle- 
macque's  corps,  which  consists  of  three  battalions  of  foot,  and  as 
many  Canadians  as  make  the  whole  amount  to  three  thousand 
men.  The  Admiral's  dispatches  and  mine  would  have  gone 
eight  or  ten  days  sooner,  if  I  had  not  been  prevented  from 
writing  by  a  fever.  I  found  myself  so  ill,  and  am  still  so  weak, 
that  I  begged  the  general  officers  to  consult  together  for  the 
public  utility.  They  are  all  of  opinion,  that,  as  more  ships  and 
provisions  are  now  got  above  the  town,  they  should  try,  by  con- 
veying up  a  corps  of  four  or  five  thousand  men,  which  is  nearly 
the  whole  strength  of  the  army,  after  the  Points  of  Levi  and 
Orleans  are  left  in  a  proper  state  of  defense,  to  draw  the  enemy 
from  their  present  situation,  and  bring  them  to  an  action.  / 
have  acquiesced  in  their  proposal,  and  we  are  preparing  to  put  it 
into  execution.  The  Admiral  and  I  have  examined  the  town, 
with  the  view  of  a  general  assault ;  but  after  consulting  with  the 
chief  Engineer,  who  is  well  acquainted  with  the  interior  parts  of 
it,  and  after  viewing  it  with  the  utmost  attention,  we  found  that, 
though  the  batteries  of  the  lower  town  might  be  easily  silenced 
by  the  men  of  war,  yet  the  business  of  an  assault  would  be  little 
advanced  by  that,  since  the  few  passages  leading  from  the  lower 
to  the  upper  town  are  carefully  entrenched,  and  the  upper 
batteries  cannot  be  affected  by  the  ships,  which  must  receive 
considerable  damage  from  them,  and  from  the  mortars.  The 
Admiral  would  readily  join  in  this,  or  in  any  other  measure 
for  the  public  service ;  but  I  would  not  propose  to  him  an 
undertaking  of  so  dangerous  a  nature  and  promising  so  little 
success. 

To  the  uncommon  strength  of  the  country  the  enemy  have 
added,  for  the  defence  of  the  river,  a  great  number  of  floating 
batteries  and  boats ;  by  the  vigilance  of  these  and  the  Indians 
round  our  different  posts,  it  has  been  impossible  to  execute  any- 
thing by  surprise.  We  have  had  almost  daily  skirmishes  with 
the  Savages,  in  which  they  are  generally  defeated,  but  not 
without  loss  on  our  side. 


QUEBEC   HOUSE,    WESTERHAM 


ilALL   OF    (QUEBEC   HOUSE,    WESTERHAM 


A   CHOICE    OF    DIFFICULTIES      471 

By  the  list  of  disabled  officers  ^  (many  of  whom  are  of  rank) 
you  may  perceive  that  the  army  is  much  weakened.  By  the 
nature  of  the  river,  the  most  formidable  part  of  this  armament 
is  deprived  of  the  power  of  acting,  yet  we  have  almost  the 
whole  force  of  Canada  to  oppose. 

In  this  situation  there  is  such  a  choice  of  difficulties,  that  I 
own  myself  at  a  loss  how  to  determine.  The  affairs  of  great 
Britain,  I  know,  require  the  most  vigorous  measures ;  however, 
you  may  be  assured  that  the  small  part  of  the  campaign  which 
remains  shall  be  employed  (as  far  as  I  am  able)  for  the  honour 
of  His  Majesty,  and  the  interest  of  the  nation :  in  which  I  am 
sure  of  being  well  seconded  by  the  Admiral  and  the  Generals. 
Happy  if  our  efforts  here  can  contribute  to  the  success  of  his 
Majesty*'s  arms  in  any  other  part  of  America.^ 

I  am.  Sir,  etc. 

James  Wolfe. 

On  the  3rd  the  abandonment  of  the  camp  was  completed,  and 
the  troops,  all  but  Carleton's  small  force,  which  still  held  the  Isle 
d'Orleans,  were  assembled  at  Levis  in  readiness  to  move  still  further 
westward.  Montcalm  could  not  understand  these  tactics.  He 
could  not  believe  that  Wolfe  really  intended  to  shift  his  base  from 
Montmorenci.  He  therefore  sent  a  messenger  to  Bougainville,  who 
was  watching  with  his  large  force  from  the  northern  heights,  warning 
him  that  "  Mr.  Wolfe  is  just  the  man  to  double  back  in  the  night." 
^  "  Return  of  killed,  wounded,  and  missing — 

Killed. 

Officers  ....        11 

Sergeants      ....  9 

Drummers     ....  0 

Rank  and  file        .        .        .162 

Total    .        .      182  651  17 

Colonel  Burton,  Colonel  Fraser,  Major  Irving,  Major  Prevost,  sixteen 
captains,  twenty-four  lieutenants  and  three  ensigns  were  wounded  ;  and 
three  captains,  six  lieutenants  and  one  ensign  were  killed  between  the  27th 
of  June  and  the  2nd  of  September." — Doughty,  vol.  ii.  p.  253. 

2  ''  Upon  the  publication  of  Wolfe's  dispatch  of  the  2nd  of  September, 
Charles  Townshend  is  said  to  have  declared  that  it  was  written  by  his  brother  ; 
'  for,'  said  he,  '  Wolfe  is  a  fiery-headed  fellow,  only  fit  for  fighting ' ;  and  the 
falsehood  was  credited  by  those  who  knew  nothing  of  Wolfe's  abilities.  But 
when  the  Honourable  Brigadier  had  occasion  to  write  to  the  Secretary  of 
State,  giving  an  account  of  events  subsequent  to  Wolfe's  death,  the  inferiority 
of  his  dispatch  was  generally  remarked.  And  George  Selwyn,  meeting  Town- 
shend one  day  at  the  Treasury,  facetiously  inquired, '  Charles,  if  your  brother 
wrote  Wolfe's  dispatch,  who  the  devil  wrote  your  brother  George's  ? '  (The 
Soldier's  Companion.)  The  composition  has  likewise  been  absurdly  attributed 
to  Colonel  Barre.     (See  Britton's  Juniits  Elucidated.)  " — Wright. 


Wounded. 

Missing. 

46 

0 

26 

0 

7 

0 

672 

17 

472    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

The  labour  and  anxiety  of  evacuation  had  told  upon  the 
British  general  severely.  On  the  4th,  having  inspected  his  entire 
forces  drawn  up  on  parade  at  Levis,  he  braced  himself  to  dine 
with  the  officers  of  Monckton's  brigade.  He  seemed  to  be  much 
better.  But  when  he  gained  his  tent  his  faithful  friend  Barre 
perceived  him  to  be  deadly  ill.  The  next  day  his  men  feared  that 
he  would  not  be  able  to  lead  them  in  person,  and  the  rumour  ran 
that  their  beloved  general  was  dying.  But  Fate  stayed  her  hand  ; 
the  end  of  the  young  warrior  was  not  to  be  that  day.  One  may 
pause  and  reflect  what  would  have  happened  had  Wolfe  succumbed. 
Not  that  year  would  the  fortress  of  Quebec  have  been  taken  :  next 
year  Pitt  had  a  new  master,  and  Lord  Bute  was  all  for  peace  with 
France.  When  would  England  again  make  the  attempt  had  she 
then  failed  ? 

Owing  either  to  the  skill  of  the  surgeon  or  his  own  indomitable 
spirit,  Wolfe  got  on  his  feet  once  more.  On  the  evening  of  the 
6th  all  the  troops  were  got  on  board  the  transports,  and  Wolfe 
joined  the  army  afloat  off*  Cap  Rouge. 

On  the  following  day  he  reconnoitred  in  the  Hunter  sloop  of 
war  as  far  westward  as  the  Point  aux  Trembles  in  order  to  find  a 
suitable  landing  for  the  troops.  Here  again  he  kept  his  counsels. 
He  knew  that  every  motion  he  made  was  watched  by  the  lynx-like 
eyes  of  the  French,  that  Montcalm  regulated  the  disposition  of  his 
troops  entirely  by  the  movements  of  his  antagonist.  On  the  8th 
he  ordered  Monckton  and  Murray  with  1500  men  to  be  ready  for 
a  feigned  attack  on  the  north  shore  by  night.  A  storm  came  on 
of  such  violence  that  nothing  could  be  done,  and  the  order  was 
countermanded.  Meanwhile  Wolfe  went  on  board  the  Sutherland 
and  composed  the  following  letter  to  the  Earl  of  Holdemess,  one 
of  Pitfs  colleagues.     It  was  the  last  of  his  dispatches. 

To  THE  Earl  of  Holderness. 

On  board  tlie  '  Sutherland ' 
at  anchor  off  Cape  Rouge, 

September  9,  1769. 

My  Lord, — If  the  Marquis  de  Montcalm  had  shut  himself 
up  in  the  town  of  Quebec,  it  would  have  been  long  since  in  our 
possession,  because  the  defences  are  inconsiderable,  and  our 
artillery  very  formidable  ;  but  he  has  a  numerous  body  of  armed 
men  (I  cannot  call  it  an  army)  and  the  strongest  country  perhaps 
in  the  world  to  rest  the  defence  of  the  town  and  colony  upon. 
The  ten  battalions  and  the  Grenadiers  of  Louisbourg  are  a 
chosen  body  of  troops,  and  able  to  fight  the  united  force  of 


DESCRIBES   THE   SITUATION      473 

Canada  upon  even  terms.  Our  field  artillery  brought  into  use 
would  terrify  the  Militia  and  the  savages,  and  our  battalions 
are  in  every  respect  superior  to  those  commanded  by  the 
Marquis,  who  acts  a  circumspect,  prudent  part,  and  entirely 
defensive,  except  in  one  extraordinary  instance — he  sent  1600 
men  over  the  river  to  attack  our  batteries  upon  the  Point  Levi, 
defended  by  foui'  battalions.  Bad  intelligence,  no  doubt,  of  our 
strength  induced  him  to  this  measure ;  however  the  detachment 
judged  better  than  their  General,  and  retired.  They  dispute 
the  water  with  the  boats  of  the  fleet  by  the  means  of  floating 
batteries,  suited  to  the  nature  of  the  rivers,  and  innumerable 
battoes.  They  have  a  great  artillery  upon  the  ramparts  towards 
the  sea,  and  so  placed  that  shipping  cannot  aff*ect  it.  I  meant 
to  attack  the  left  of  their  entrenchments,  favoured  by  our 
artillery,  the  31st  July.  A  multitude  of  traverses  prevented,  in 
some  measure,  its  effect,  which  was  nevertheless  very  considerable. 
Accidents  hindered  the  attack,  and  the  enemy's  care  to  strengthen 
that  post  has  made  it  since  too  hazardous.  The  town  is  totally 
demolished,  and  the  country  in  a  great  measure  ruined, 
particularly  the  Lower  Canada.  Our  fleet  blocks  up  the  river, 
both  above  and  below  the  town,  but  can  give  no  manner  of 
assistance  in  an  attack  upon  the  Canadian  army.  We  have 
continued  skirmishes ;  old  people  seventy  years  of  age,  and  boys 
of  fifteen  fire  on  our  detachments,  and  kiU  or  wound  our  men 
from  the  edges  of  the  woods.  Every  man  able  to  bear  arms, 
both  above  and  below  Quebec,  is  in  the  camp  at  Beauport. 
The  old  men,  women,  and  children  are  retired  into  the  woods. 
The  Canadians  are  extremely  dissatisfied ;  but,  curbed  by  the 
force  of  the  Government,  and  terrified  by  the  savages  that  are 
posted  rounded  about  them,  they  are  obliged  to  keep  together 
to  work  and  man  the  entrenchments. 

Upwards  of  twenty  sail  of  ships  got  in  before  our  squadron, 
and  brought  succours  of  all  sorts,  which  were  exceedingly  wanted 
in  the  colony.  The  sailors  of  these  ships  help  to  work  the  guns, 
and  others  conduct  the  floating  batteries.  Their  ships  are 
lightened,  and  carried  up  the  river  out  of  our  reach — at  least 
out  of  the  reach  of  the  men-of-war.  These  ships  serve  a  double 
purpose;  they  are  magazines  for  their  provisions,  and  at  the 
same  time  cut  off"  all  communications  between  General  Amhersfs 
army  and  the  corps  under  my  command,  so  that  we  are  not  able 
to  make  any  detachment  to  attack  Montreal,  or  favour  the 
junctions,  or,  by  attacking  the  fort  of  Chambly  or  Boulemargue's 


474    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

corps  behind,  open  the  General's  way  into  Canada, — all  which 
might  have  been  easily  done  with  ten  floating  batteries,  carrying 
each  a  gun,  and  twenty  flat-bottomed  boats,  if  there  had  been 
no  ships  in  the  river.  Our  poor  soldiery  have  worked  without 
ceasing,  and  without  murmuring;  and  as  often  as  the  enemy 
have  attempted  upon  us,  they  have  been  repulsed  by  the  valour 
of  the  men.  A  woody  country,  so  well  known  to  the  enemy, 
and  an  enemy  so  vigilant  and  hardy  as  the  Indians  and 
Canadians  are,  make  entrenchments  everywhere  necessary,  and 
by  this  precaution  we  have  saved  a  number  of  lives  ;  for  scarce  a 
night  passes  that  they  are  not  close  in  upon  our  posts,  watching 
an  opportunity  to  surprise  and  murder.  There  is  very  little 
quarter  given  on  either  side. 

We  have  seven  hours,  and  sometimes, — above  the  town  after 
rain, — near  eight  hours  of  the  most  violent  ebb  tide  that  can  be 
imagined,  which  loses  us  an  infinite  deal  of  time  in  every 
operation  on  the  water ;  and  the  stream  is  so  strong,  particularly 
here,  that  the  ships  often  drag  their  anchors  by  the  mere  force 
of  the  current.  The  bottom  is  a  bed  of  rock,  so  that  a  ship, 
unless  it  hooks  a  ragged  rock,  holds  by  the  weight  only  of  the 
anchor.  Doubtless,  if  the  equinoctial  gale  has  any  force,  a 
number  of  ships  must  necessarily  run  ashore  and  be  lost.  The 
day  after  the  troops  landed  upon  the  Isle  of  Orleans,  a  violent 
storm  had  nigh  ruined  the  expedition  altogether.  Numbers  of 
boats  were  lost ;  all  the  whaleboats  and  most  of  the  cutters 
were  stove;  some  flat-bottomed  boats  destroyed,  and  others 
damaged.  We  never  had  half  as  many  of  the  latter  as  are 
necessary  for  this  extraordinary  and  very  important  service. 
The  enemy  is  able  to  fight  us  upon  the  water  whenever  we  are 
out  of  the  reach  of  the  cannon  of  the  fleet. 

The  extreme  heat  of  the  weather  in  August,  and  a  good  deal 
of  fatigue,  threw  me  into  a  fever ;  but  that  the  business  might 
go  on,  I  begged  the  Generals  to  consider  amongst  themselves 
what  was  fittest  to  be  done.  Their  sentiments  were  unanimous, 
that,  as  the  easterly  winds  begin  to  blow,  and  ships  can  pass  the 
town  in  the  night  with  provisions,  artillery,  etc.,  we  should 
endeavour,  by  conveying  a  considerable  corps  into  the  upper 
river,  to  draw  them  from  their  inaccessible  situation,  and  bring 
them  to  an  action.  I  agreed  to  the  proposal,  and  we  are  now 
here,  with  about  3600  men,  waiting  an  opportunity  to  attack 
them  when  and  wherever  they  can  best  be  got  at.  The  weather 
has  been  extremely  unfavourable  for  a  day  or  two,  so  that  w© 


HIS    SCHEME    FORMULATED      475 

have  been  inactive.  I  am  so  far  recovered  as  to  do  business,  but 
my  constitution  is  entirely  ruined,  without  the  consolation  of 
having  done  any  considerable  service  to  the  State,  or  without 
any  prospect  of  it. 

I  have  the  honour  to  be,  etc., 

Jam.  Wolfe.^ 

At  the  very  moment  when  the  dispatch  to  Holderness  was 
penned,  Wolfe's  brain  harboured,  unknown  to  a  living  soul,  the 
one  scheme  which  was  to  lead  him  to  victory  and  to  an  eternal 
niche  in  the  fane  of  British  heroes.^ 

He  had  given  up  hoping  for  help  from  Amherst,  whose  conduct, 
by  the  bye,  in  not  coming  to  Wolfe's  succour  at  this  juncture, 
when  he  could  easily  have  done  it,  is  inexplicable.  In  Kingsford's 
opinion  it  "  can  only  be  attributed  to  his  belief  that  Wolfe  would 
fail  in  his  enterprise.""  We  do  not  know  what  Wolfe  thought  of 
his  chiefs  inactivity,  but  eighteen  years  later  Carleton  (Lord 
Dorchester)  strongly  denounced  Amherst's  failure  to  co-operate 
with  Wolfe.3 

It  will  have  been  understood  what  was  the  object  of  his  tactics. 
It  was  to  separate  Montcalm's  forces.  With  his  alert  intelligence 
department  he  knew  how  utterly  perplexed  the  French  commanders 
w^re.* 

Wolfe  was  thoroughly  apprised  of  the  situation  of  the  enemy. 
That  is  one  important  fact  to  bear  in  mind  in  considering  his 
movements  in  the  week  prior  to  the  battle.  He  knew  that  the 
man  in  charge  of  the  outposts  on  the  summit  of  those  heights, 
Vergor  by  name,  was  a  true  product  of  the  Bigot  regime,  and  no 
more  vigilant  than  a  man  would  be  who  was  thinking  how  he  could 
work  his  farm  with  the  aid  of  his  soldiers.  Besides  the  Foulon 
post  Wolfe  knew  of  another  obstacle  in  the  Samos  battery  of  four 
gims  and  a  mortar  three  hundred   yards  nearer  Sillery,  but  he 

^  From  Chatham  Correspondence. 

2  He  had  already  written  to  Saunders  August  30th — ''My  ill-state  of  health 
hinders  me  from  executing  my  own  plan  :  it  is  of  too  desperate  a  nature  to 
order  others  to  execute." 

3  Canadian  Archives  Report,  1885,  p.  cxxxiii. 

*  A  good  deal  has  been  written  about  a  certain  Major  Stobo,  a  Scottish 
officer  who,  after  Washington's  defeat  at  Fort  Necessity,  had  been  sent  as 
hostage  to  Quebec.  There  he  had  actively  employed  his  eyes,  broken  his 
parole  and  escaped  to  the  British,  to  whom  he  gave  valuable  information. 
He  is  said  to  have  pointed  out  the  Anse  du  Foulon  to  Wolfe,  and  to  have 
been  present  in  the  general  attack.  As  a  matter  of  fact  Stobo,  who  was  not 
in  very  good  repute,  left  Quebec  on  the  7th  September. — See  Doughty,  vol. 
ii.  p.  114. 


476    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

felt  this  could  be  taken  in  reverse,  once  the  troops  could  get 
a  footing  on  the  heights.^  Had  the  Guienne  regiment  remained 
overlooking  the  river,  where  it  had  been  stationed  by  Montcalm, 
Wolfe  might  have  hesitated.  But  he  knew  that  Vaudreuil  had 
withdrawn  it  on  the  7th,  trusting  to  the  natural  inaccessibility  of 
the  heights,  and  so  the  coast  between  Cap  Rouge  and  Sillery  was 
clear. 

On  the  9th,  keeping  his  counsel,  he  landed  from  a  ship's  boat 
just  below  the  Etchimin  river  and  surveyed  the  opposite  shore 
through  a  glass.  He  saw  the  tents  of  the  enemy  on  the  summit  of 
the  cliffs — scarce  more  than  a  dozen  of  them  at  one  point — the 
point  which  from  its  natural  features  riveted  his  attention  most. 
It  was  about  a  mile  from  Quebec.  At  this  point  the  lofty  banks 
take  an  inward  curve,  and  a  narrow  path  wound  up  the  heights 
from  the  water''s  edge.  It  was  called  Anse  du  Foulon.  It  was  the 
solitary  access  to  the  plains  above,  and  yet  so  inaccessible  that  one 
would  have  said  only  a  foolhardy  commander  would  have  thought 
of  it  as  negotiable  even  by  light  infantry.  Montcalm  was  evidently 
much  of  this  opinion,  for  he  had  stationed  but  a  hundred  men  at 
the  post  here  on  the  summit. 

Here,  then,  was  Montcalm's  weak  point — here,  having  drawn  off 
the  enemy's  forces  to  right  and  left,  Wolfe  could  deal  him  the  blow 
for  which  he  had  waited  so  many  long,  dreary  weeks.  On  his 
return  he  kept  his  own  counsel.  The  opinion  of  his  brigadiers  was 
not  asked.  Stanhope  was  therefore  right  in  his  assertion,  since 
impugned  by  various  partisans  and  upholders  of  "  family  interest " 
that,  "  The  honour  of  the  first  thought  belongs  to  Wolfe  alone." 

On  the  following  day  Wolfe  took  Monckton,  Townshend, 
Holmes,  Carleton,  and  Delaune  of  his  staff,  to  make  a  survey 
of  the  spot  he  had  selected.  In  order  that  their  uniforms  should 
not  betray  their  rank  to  the  enemy,  they  threw  on  grenadiers'  over- 
coats as  a  disguise;  but  they  must  have  worn  them  loosely,  the 
disguise  being  far  from  perfect.  The  French  officer  in  command  at 
Sillery  reported  to  Bougainville  seeing  "  three  boats  of  the  enemy, 
carrying  many  officers  in  gay  uniforms,  one  in  particular  in  a  blue 
surtout,  with  much  gold  lace."  After  a  reconnaissance  they  planted 
some  javelins  and  regained  their  boats  about  six  in  the  evening. 

*  "  Its  guns  could  not  be  trained  through  a  sufficiently  wide  arc  to  afford 
any  flanking  fire,  and  there  were  no  embrasures  at  all  towards  the  rear." 
—Wood,  p.  217. 


2    .f 
S    'I 


■1  -««; 


XXI 

THE  PLAINS  OF  ABRAHAM 

Still  were  the  brigadiers  kept  in  the  dark  as  to  the  plans  of  their 
commander,  although  Holmes  and  Carleton  were  both  probably 
informed  of  the  exact  landing-place,  and  the  letter  which,  on  that 
very  evening,  the  10th,  Wolfe  wrote  Burton,  shows  how  every- 
thing was  clearly  settled  in  his  mind. 

To  Colonel  Bueton. 

"  Sutherland/'  above  Cap  Rouge, 

Monday,  \Qth  September,  1769. 

Dear  Colonel, — You  perfectly  understood  my  meaning  in 
every  particular.  Goreham's  first  post  is  under  the  point  of 
a  hill,  where  there  is  a  little  road  running  from  Balling's  old 
quarter  up  to  the  river;  the  way  down  is  very  steep,  but  I 
believe  the  troops  can  march  at  low  water  all  along  the  beach 
from  the  Point  of  Levi.  I  think  it  is  not  above  a  mile  and  a 
half,  or  two  miles,  from  our  batteries.  The  deserter''s  intelligence 
in  respect  to  Mons.  de  VaudreuiPs  movements  agrees  in  part 
with  our  observations ;  but  it  is  absolutely  impossible  that  the 
Marquis  can  have  so  large  a  corps ;  I  don't  believe  their  whole 
army  amounts  to  that  number.  That  De  Levi  may  be  gone 
towards  Montreal  is  likely  enough,  and  seems  to  mark  our 
General's  progress  :  the  more  necessity  for  vigour  on  our  side  to 
second  his  endeavours. 

Sixteen  hundred  of  our  men  are  upon  the  south  shore,  to 
clean  and  refresh  themselves  and  their  transports ;  and,  indeed, 
to  save  the  whole  army,  which  must  have  perished  if  they  had 
continued  forty-eight  hours  longer  on  board.  To-morrow  the 
troops  re-embark,  the  fleet  sails  up  the  river  a  little  higher,  as  if 
intending  to  land  above  upon  the  north  shore,  keeping  a  con- 
venient distance  for  the  boats  and  armed  vessels  to  fall  down  to 
the  Fouhn;  and  we  count  (if  no  accident  of  weather  or  other 
prevents)  to  make  a  powerful  effort  at  that  spot  about  four  in 
the  morning  of  the  13th.  At  ten  or  eleven,  or  twelve  at  night, 
sooner  or  later,  as  it  may  be  necessary,  of  Wednesday,  the  12th, 

477 


478    LIFE  AND  LETTERS  OF  WOLFE 

we  get  into  our  boats.  If  we  are  forced  to  alter  these  measures, 
you  shall  know  it ;  if  not,  it  stands  fixed :  be  you  careful  not  to 
drop  it  to  any,  for  fear  of  desertion ;  and  it  would  not  be  amiss 
for  Carleton  to  pass  his  troops  [from  Orleans]  in  the  beginning 
of  Wednesday  night.  Crofton  can  file  along  the  shore  to  his 
right,  and  meet  you  at  the  post  you  take ;  let  the  men  have 
their  blankets,  and  let  the  tents  be  struck,  bundled  up,  and 
ready  to  bring  over.  If  we  succeed  in  the  first  business,  it  may 
produce  an  action,  which  may  produce  the  total  conquest  of 
Canada;  in  all  cases  it  is  our  duty  to  try  the  most  likely  way, 
whatever  may  be  the  event. 

What  the  deserter  says  of  the  bread  made  of  new  wheat  is 
exactly  what  has  been  told  me  by  other  deserters,  and  I  believe 
the  scarcity  in  the  colony  to  be  excessive.  Their  army  is  kept 
together  by  the  violent  strong  hand  of  the  Government  and  by 
the  terror  of  savages,  joined  to  a  situation  which  makes  it 
difficult  to  evade.  The  Canadians  have  no  affection  for  their 
Government,  nor  no  tie  so  strong  as  their  wives  and  children ; 
they  are  a  disjointed,  discontented,  dispirited  peasantry,  beat 
into  cowardice  by  Cades,  Bigot,  Montcalm,  and  the  savages. 

Yours  affectionately, 

J.  Wolfe. 

Admiral  Holmes,  who  was  in  the  secret,  writing  five  days  after 
the  battle  was  fought,  thus  refers  to  Wolfe's  change  of  plan — 

"  A  plan  was  immediately  set  on  foot,  to  attempt  a  landing 
about  four  leagues  above  the  town,  and  it  was  ready  to  put  into 
execution  when  General  Wolfe  reconnoitred  down  the  River  and 
fixed  upon  Foulon,  a  spot  adjacent  to  the  Citadel,  which,  tho** 
a  very  strong  Ground,  being  a  steep  Hill  with  abbatis  laid  across 
the  accessible  parts  of  it  and  a  Guard  on  the  Summit.  He  never- 
theless thought  that  a  sudden  brisk  attack  a  little  before  day- 
break would  bring  his  army  on  the  plain,  within  two  miles  of 
the  town.  The  alteration  of  the  Plan  of  Operations  was  not,  I 
believe,  approved  of  by  many  besides  himself."" 

As  a  matter  of  fact  the  brigadiers  had,  on  the  8th,  themselves 
decided  that  a  landing  at  Pointe  aux  Trembles  would  offer  the  best 
chances  of  success ;  and  while  they  were  reconnoitring  that  distant 
part  of  the  shore  on  the  9th,  Wolfe,  as  we  have  seen,  was  making 
up  his  mind  alone  as  to  Foulon. 

Townshend   in   his   Diary  wrote  :  "  By  some  intelligence  the 


PREPARATIONS    TO    ATTACK      479 

General  had  he  had  changed  his  mind  as  to  the  place  he  intended 
to  land,"  but  knew  nothing  more  himself  than  was  announced  in 
the  Orders  of  the  11th. 

Enough,  therefore,  has  been  said  to  expose  the  utter  baseless- 
ness of  the  contention  of  Warburton  and  others  that  "  the  merit  of 
this  daring  and  skilful  proposition  belongs  to  George  Townshend, 
although  long  disputed  and  withheld  by  jealousy  and  political 
hostility,*"  When  Wright  argued  for  Wolfe's  sole  authorship  of 
the  plan  he  was  unaware  of  documents  which  have  since  come  to 
light  showing  the  ignorance  of  the  brigadiers  on  that  very  point. 

The  Orders  issued  on  the  11th  referred  to  by  Townshend  were 
as  follows : 

To  the  Army  before  Quebec. 

"  The  troops  on  shore,  except  the  light  infantry  and  Ameri- 
cans, are  to  be  on  the  beach,  to-morrow  morning  at  five  o'clock,  in 
readiness  to  embark  ;  the  light  infantry  and  Americans  will  em- 
bark at  or  about,  eight  o'clock ;  the  detachment  of  artillery  to 
be  put  on  board  the  armed  sloop  this  day.  The  army  to  hold 
themselves  in  readiness  to  land  and  attack  the  enemy.  As  the 
Lowestoffe  and  Squirrel  frigates  are  ordered  to  follow  the  flat- 
bottomed  boats,  the  troops  belonging  to  those  ships  are  to 
remain  in  them,  and  the  boats  intended  for  these  corps  are  to 
take  in  others,  according  to  the  following  distribution  : — 

Stirling  Castle  2  TTo  take  fifty  into  each  boat  of  Bragg's  regi- 

Dublin  .     .     .  3J      ment,  out  of  the  Ann  and  Elizabeth  trans- 

1  \     port,  instead  of  Amherst's. 


Aleide    . 
PembroJce 


. /To  take  in  Kennedy's  regiment,  out  of  the 
\  Employment  transport. 
Vanguard  .  .  4/To  take  in  Colonel  Howe's  Corps  of  light  in- 
Trident  .  .  4\  fantry,  out  of  the  Jane  and  Mary  transport. 
Centurion  .  .  2 /To  take  in  Anstruther's,  out  of  the  George 
Shrewsbury     .  4\     transport. 

'To  take  Lascelles's  regiment,  in  five  boats,  out 
of  the  Ward  transport,  and  fifty  of  the 
Royal  American  Grenadiers,  out  of  the 
Sutherland^  in  the  sixth  boat. 

"  There  remain  to  be  taken  into  the  boats  of  the  fleet  two 
hundred  Highlanders,  of  which  The  Ten'or  of  Franx;e  schooner 
takes  fifty  from  the  Ann  and  Elizabeth  ;  the  remaining  one 
hundred  and  fifty  Highlanders,  in  the  Ward  transport,  will  be 
taken  by  the  following  boats :   Sutherland's  long  boat,  fourty ; 


Medway     .     .  2 
Captain      .     .  4 


480    LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Aleide  and  Medway,  fourty  each  ;  AdmiraTs  flat-bottomed  boat, 
fifteen ;  Sutherland  cutter,  fifteen.  Ships  that  carry  troops 
immediately  after  the  flat-bottomed  boats.  Lowestoffe  frigate, 
three  hundred  of  Amherst's ;  Squirrel,  two  hundred  and  fourty 
of  Louisbourg  Grenadiers ;  Seahorse,  two  hundred  and  fifty 
Highlanders ;  Hunter  sloop,  one  hundred  and  twenty  High- 
landers; three  armed  vessels,  two  hundred  Light  Infantry; 
Laurel  transport,  four  hundred  Royal  Americans ;  Adventure 
transport,  four  hundred  of  Otway's.  Ordnance  vessels,  with 
tools  and  artillery  men.  The  George  transport  to  be  evacuated, 
and  Highlanders  being  one  hundred  and  fifty,  to  be  removed 
into  Seahorse  frigate ;  and  one  hundred  of  the  same  corps  from 
the  Ann  and  Elizabeth,  to  be  removed  also  on  board  the 
Seahorse  to-morrow  morning,  after  the  reimbarkation  of  the 
first  body  of  the  troops  from  Brigadier  Monckton's  corps,  at 
St.  Nicholas. 


Order 

OF  Troops  in  the  Tjne  of  Boats. 

Number  of  Boats 

). 

8     .     . 

1st 

Light  Infantry  leads. 

6 

2nd 

Bragg's  regiment. 

4 

3rd 

Kennedy's  regiment. 

5 

4th 

Lascelles's  regiment. 

6 

5th  Anstruther's  regiment. 

1 

.     6th  Detachment  of  Highlanders  and  Ameri 

can  Grenadiers. 

"Captain  Chads,  of  the  navy,  has  received  the  General's 
direction  in  respect  to  the  order  in  which  the  troops  move,  and 
are  to  land ;  and  no  officer  must  attempt  to  make  the  least 
alteration,  or  interfere  with  Captain  Chad's  particular  province, 
lest,  as  the  boats  move  in  the  night  there  may  be  disorder  and 
confusion  among  them.  The  troops  must  go  into  the  boats 
about  nine  to-morrow  night,  or  when  it  is  pretty  near  high 
water ;  but  the  naval  officers,  commanding  the  different  divisions 
of  boats,  will  apprize  them  of  the  fittest  time ;  and  as  there 
will  be  a  necessity  for  remaining  some  part  of  the  night 
in  the  boats,  the  Officers  will  provide  accordingly  ;  and  the 
soldiers  will  have  a  jill  of  rum  extraordinary  to  mix  with  their 
water ;  arms  and  ammunition,  two  days'  provisions  with  rum 
and  water,  are  all  that  the  soldiers  are  to  take  into  the  boats  ; 
their  ships,  with  their  blankets,  tents,  etc.  will  soon  be  brought 
up." 


FEARS   FOR  HIS   SECRET  481 

The  night  of  the  12th  was  fixed  upon  for  the  movement  of 
the  troops,  and  on  this  day  Wolfe  was  very  busy.  The  brigadiers 
— ^Townshend  and  Murray  at  least — were  distrustful  of  the  whole 
business,  and  angry  at  the  rejection  of  their  own  plan.  Holmes, 
who  probably  shared  their  views,  afterwards  wrote — 

''  This  alteration  of  the  plan  of  operations  was  not  approved 
by  many  besides  himself  [Wolfe].  It  had  been  proposed  to  him 
a  month  before,  when  the  first  ships  passed  the  town,  and  when 
it  was  entirely  defenceless  and  imguarded.  .  .  .  He  now  laid 
hold  of  it  when  it  was  highly  improbable  he  should  succeed.  .  .  . 
The  care  of  landing  the  troops  and  sustaining  them  by  the 
ships  fell  to  my  share — the  most  hazardous  and  difficult  task 
I  was  ever  engaged  in.  For  the  distance  of  the  landing-place, 
the  impetuosity  of  the  tide,  the  darkness  of  the  night,  and 
the  great  chance  of  exactly  hitting  the  very  spot  intended 
without  discovery  or  alarm,  made  the  whole  extremely 
difficult."  1 

Wolfe''s  perpetual  anxiety  lest  any  part  of  his  plan  should  be 
disclosed  was  justified.  Had  it  not  been  for  his  precautions,  a 
private  of  the  Royal  Americans  who  deserted  on  the  12th  would 
have  had  it  in  his  power  to  betray  him  to  Montcalm.  He  in  turn 
from  a  French  deserter  learnt  that  the  French  General  was  still 
within  his  entrenchments,  Levis  marching  with  a  large  detach- 
ment toward  Montreal,  and  Bougainville'*s  force  overlooking  the 
upper  river  waiting  in  expectation  of  an  attack. 

Wolfe  thus  described  the  situation  in  his  last  general  orders  on 
the  eve  of  his  great  and  last  coup — 

To  THE  Army. 

On  board  his  Majesty's  ship  "Sutherland," 

September  12,  1759. 
The  enemy'*s  force  is  now  divided  ;  great  scarcity  of  pro- 
visions is  in  their  camp,  and  universal  discontent  among  the 
Canadians.  The  second  officer  in  command  is  gone  to  Montreal, 
or  St.  John's,  which  gives  reason  to  think  that  General  Amherst 
is  advancing  into  the  colony.  A  vigorous  blow  struck  by  the 
army  at  this  juncture  may  determine  the  fate  of  Canada.  Our 
troops  below  are  in  readiness  to  join  us  ;  all  the  light  artillery 
and  tools  are  embarked  at  Point  Levi,  and  the  troops  will  land 
where  the  French  seem  least  to  expect  it. 

1  Doughty,  vol.  iv.  p.  296. 
I  I 


482     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

The  first  body  that  gets  on  shore  is  to  march  directly  to  the 
enemy,  and  drive  them  from  any  little  post  they  may  occupy. 
The  officers  must  be  careful  that  the  succeeding  bodies  do  not  by 
any  mistake  fire  upon  those  who  go  before  them.  The  battalions 
must  form  on  the  upper  ground  with  expedition,  and  be  ready 
to  charge  whatever  presents  itself.  When  the  artillery  and 
troops  are  landed,  a  corps  will  be  left  to  secure  the  landing-place, 
while  the  rest  march  on,  and  endeavour  to  bring  the  French  and 
Canadians  to  a  battle.  The  officers  and  men  will  remember 
what  their  country  expects  from  them,  and  what  a  determined 
body  of  soldiers,  inured  to  war,  is  capable  of  doing  against  five 
weak  French  battalions  mingled  with  disorderly  peasantry.  The 
soldiers  must  be  attentive  and  obedient  to  their  officers,  and  the 
officers  resolute  in  the  execution  of  their  duty. 

It  was  his  farewell  message  to  his  brave  and  devoted  troops. 
"  Duty — remember  what  their  country  expects.'"'  Is  not  this  the 
fore-runner  of  Nelson's  farewell  signal  at  Trafalgar  ? 

To  cover  his  master  stroke  it  had  been  arranged  that  Saunders' 
guns  and  batteries  should  threaten  Beauport,  while  far  above  the 
city  Holmes  was  to  advance  some  of  his  fleet  so  as  to  attract  the 
attention  of  Bougainville.  In  addition  to  these  two  demonstra- 
tions the  batteries  at  Point  Levis  renewed  their  bombai'dment  of 
the  lower  town. 

Twilight  came  on  ;  it  is  brief  in  these  latitudes.  It  was  suc- 
ceeded by  a  sombre  night  to  which  the  stars  lent  but  little  radiance. 
All  at  once  the  echoes,  stilled  for  some  hours,  were  re-awakened  by 
the  booming  of  guns.  Noiselessly  the  lighter  ships  of  the  squadron 
swept  past  the  city,  while  every  soldier  that  could  be  spared  and 
could  shoulder  a  musket,  marched  from  Levis  up  the  right  bank  of 
the  river  in  the  darkness  as  to  where  their  comrades  in  the  trans- 
ports lay,  and  taking  boat,  rejoined  them.  Hushed  and  expectant 
were  these  thousands  of  men,  awaiting  the  signal  when  they  were 
to  launch  themselves  in  the  boats,  and  cast  off  down  the  river 
to  the  unknown  landing-place.  No  one  slept;  no  one  felt  like 
slumber. 

On  board  the  Sutherland,  the  General  sat  in  his  cabin.  He 
had  sent  a  note  to  his  early  friend  Jervis,  the  commander  of  the 
Porcupine  sloop,  to  come  aboard  to  spend  an  hour  or  two  with 
him. 

Jervis  found  the  General  had  a  trust  to  repose  in  him — one  he 
would  have  given  to  Carleton — but  no  soldier  might  call  himself 


/^A...    -/'^'-    ^    •'--'  ^V    ', 


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V  . 

M^/i^^'                  ^    ^ 

WOLFE  S   WILL 
From  the  original  at  Somerset  House 


HIS   WILL  483 

safe  on  the  morrow.  Gravely  he  handed  the  young  sailor  the  will  ^ 
he  had  made  three  months  before  at  sea,  his  note-book  and  papers, 
while  from  his  bosom  he  drew  a  portrait  of  Miss  Lowther,  which 
was  to  be  returned  to  her  in  case  he  fell.  And  Wolfe  believed  he 
would  fall ;  he  had  a  presentiment  of  death. 

To  the  will  he  had  added  a  codicil,  penned  on  the  eve  of  the 
battle  of  Montmorency,  and  witnessed  by  Barre  and  Hervey  Smith, 
by  which  he  left  .^^IjOOO  each  to  his  uncle,  Major  Walter  Wolfc; 
and  his  cousin,  Captain  Edward  Goldsmith. 

"  Neptune  "  at  Sea, 

8^^  June,  1759. 

"  I  desire  that  Miss  Lowther'^s  picture  may  be  set  in  jewels 
to  the  amount  of  five  hundred  guineas  and  returned  to  her. 

I  leave  to  Col.  Oughton,  Col.  Carleton,  Col.  Howe,  and  Col. 
Warde  a  thousand  pounds  each.  I  desire  Admiral  Saunders  to 
accept  of  my  light  service  of  Plate,  in  remembrance  of  his  Guest, 
My  camp  equipage,  kitchen  furniture,  table  linen,  wine  and 
provisions,  I  leave  to  the  officer  who  succeeds  me  in  the 
command. 

All  my  books  and  papers,  both  here  and  in  England,  I  leave 
to  Col.  Carleton. 

I  leave  Major  Barre,^  Capt.  De  Laune,  Capt.  Smyth,  Capt. 
Bell,  Capt.  Leslie,  and  Capt.  Caldwell,  each  a  hundred  guineas  to 
buy  swords  and  rings,  in  remembrance  of  their  friend.  My 
-  servant  Francois  shall  have  half  of  my  clothes  and  linen  here, 
and  the  three  footmen  shall  divide  the  rest  amongst  them.  All 
the  servants  shall  be  paid  their  year's  wages  and  their  board 
wages  till  they  arrive  in  England,  or  till  they  engage  with  other 
masters,  or  enter  into   some  other  profession.     Besides  this,   I 

^  Of  this  will  Colonel  Wood  says  truly  that  ^^  it  throws  a  good  deal  of  light 
on  his  character,  more  especially  of  the  unvarying  kindness  to  those  in 
humble  positions  under  him,  which  earned  him  the  name  of  '  The  Soldiers' 
Friend.'" 

^  Barre,  there  is  reason  to  believe,  was  introduced  to  Wolfe  by  their 
common  friend  Lord  Fitzmaurice,  afterwards  Earl  of  Shelburne.  "  You  may 
be  sure,"  wrote  Wolfe  to  Rickson,  "that  my  information  came  from  the  best 
hands."  And, -from  a  letter  written  in  1762,  cited  in  "The  Chatham 
Correspondence,"  it  appears  that  Barre  was  ^'  found  out,  pushed,  and  brought 
into  Parliament  by  Lord  Shelburne."  His  conduct  as  Adjutant-General  of 
the  expedition  was  so  highly  appreciated  by  his  commander,  that,  when 
the  success  of  the  campaign  seemed  hopeless,  Wolfe  regretted  his  want 
of  power  to  serve  him,  and  only  wished  for  an  opportunity  to  make  him  the 
messenger  of  good  news, — an  honour  of  which  the  battle  of  Quebec  deprived 
him.  In  the  following  year,  however,  Barre  was  the  bearer  of  General 
Amherst'i  dispatches  announcing  the  surrender  of  Montreal. — Wright. 

112 


484     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

leave  fifty  guineas  to  Francois,  twenty  to  Ambrose  and  ten  to 
each  of  the  others. 

Everything  over  and  above  these  legacies  I  leave  to  my  good 
mother,  entirely  at  her  disposal.^ 

James  Wolfe." 
"  Witness 

Will  De  Laune, 
Tho.  Bell." 

While  the  two  friends  still  sat  together  in  the  cabin  a  messenger 
entered  with  a  note  signed  by  the  three  brigadiers.  Monckton 
had  been  induced  to  sign — probably  sorely  against  the  grain. 

To  General  Wolfe. 

On  board  the  "  Loestoft/' 

Sept.  12,  1759. 
Sir, — As  we  do  not  think  ourselves  sufficiently  informed  of 
the  several  facts  which  may  fall  to  our  share  in  the  execution  of 
the  descent  you  intend  to-morrow,  we  must  beg  leave  to  request 
from  you,  as  distinct  orders  as  the  nature  of  the  thing  will  admit 
of,  particularly  to  the  place  or  places  we  are  to  attack.  This 
circumstance  (perhaps  very  decisive)  we  cannot  learn  from  the 
public  orders,  neither  may  it  be  in  the  power  of  the  naval  officer 
who  leads  the  Troops  to  instruct  us.  As  we  should  be  very 
sorry,  no  less  for  the  public  than  our  own  sakes,  to  commit 
any  mistakes,  we  are  persuaded  you  will  see  the  necessity  of  this 
application. 

(signed) 
Robert  Monckton, 
George  Townshend, 
James  Murray. 

He  must  have  smiled  grimly  as  he  read  this  missive.  It  would 
have  been  easy  to  ignore  it.     He,   however,  seized  his  pen  once 

^  Joslma  Parry  knew  Wolfe  personally,  '^l  will  send  you/'  he  wrote 
Lord  Bathurst  in  1760,  ^'  an  anecdote  I  have  heard  of  poor  Wolfe.  His 
father  was  excessively  fond  of  him  and  always  allowed  him  rather  more  than 
he  could  afford  or  than  the  young  man  wanted.  When  he  heard  his  father 
was  very  ill,  he  was  extremely  uneasy  for  fear  he  should  leave  everything  to 
him  and  neglect  his  mother,  telling  his  friends  that  though  it  would  be  the 
same  thing  to  her  in  respect  of  his  fortune,  for  he  was  determined  to  give  it 
all  to  her,  yet  he  thought  it  was  a  most  disagreeable  circumstance  for  a  parent 
to  stand  under  obligations  to  a  child.  He  immediately  sent  her  £300,  which 
was  all  that  he  could  command,  and  expressed  extreme  satisfaction  when  he 
heard  that  his  father  had  provided  well  for  her." — Quarterly  Review,  vol.  185, 
p.  104. 


REJOINDER  TO   MONCKTON        485 

more.     With  admirable  self-control  he  again  went  over  the  ground 
to  Monckton,  and  Monckton  alone.^ 

To  Brigadier  Monckton. 

'^  Sutherland/'  Q\  o'clock, 

\2th  Sept.  1759. 

Sir, — My  reason  for  desiring  the  honour  of  your  company 
with  me  to  Gorham''s  post  yesterday  was  to  shew  you,  as  well  as 
the  distance  would  permit,  the  situation  of  the  enemy,  and  the 
place  where  I  meant  they  should  be  attacked  ;  as  you  are  charged 
with  that  duty  I  should  be  glad  to  give  you  all  further  light  and 
assistance  in  my  power. — The  place  is  called  the  Foulon^  distant 
upon  2  miles  or  2J  from  Quebec,  where  you  remember  an 
encampment  of  12  or  13  Tents  and  an  abbatis  below  it. — You 
mentioned  to-day  that  you  had  perceived  a  breastwork  there 
which  made  me  imagine  you  as  well  acquainted  with  the  place 
as  the  nature  of  the  thing  would  admit  of.  I  took  Capt.  Chads 
with  me  also  and  desired  the  Admiral's  attendance,  that  as  the 
former  is  charged  by  Mr.  Saunders  with  conducting  the  boats, 
he  might  make  himself  as  much  a  master  of  his  part  as  possible  ; 
and  as  several  of  the  Ships  of  War  are  to  fall  down  with  the 
troops,  Mr.  Holmes  would  be  able  to  station  them  properly 
after  he  had  seen  the  place.  I  have  desired  Mr.  Holmes  to  send 
the  boats  down,  so  that  we  may  arrive  about  half  an  hour  before 
day,  as  you  desired  to  avoid  the  disorder  of  a  night  attack,  and 
I  shall  be  present  myself  to  give  you  all  the  aid  in  my  power. 

The  officers  who  are  appointed  to  conduct  the  divisions  of 
boats  have  been  strictly  enjoined  to  keep  as  much  order  and  to 
act  as  silently  as  the  nature  of  the  service  will  admit  of,  and 
Capt.  Chads  will  begin  to  land  the  men  a  little  of  this  side  of  the 
naked  Rock,  which  you  must  remember  to  have  seen,  within 
which  (to  the  east-ward)  the  enemy  is  posted. 

It  is  not  a  usual  thing  to  point  out  in  the  public  orders  the 
direct  spot  of  our  attack,  nor  for  any  inferior  Officers  not  charged 
with  a  particular  duty  to  ask  instructions  upon  that  point.  I 
had  the  honour  to  inform  you  to-day,  that  it  is  my  duty  to  attack 
the  French  Army.  To  the  best  of  my  knowledge  and  abilities  I 
have  fixed  upon  that  spot  where  we  can  act  with  the  most  force 
and  are  most  likely  to  succeed.     If  I  am  mistaken  I  am  sorry 

1  "  These  letters,  written  a  few  hours  hefore  the  battle,  after  final  arrange- 
ments for  the  enterprise  had  been  made,  are  surely  a  sufficient  answer  to  the 
numerous  critics  who  have  asserted  that  Wolfe  simply  carried  out  the  plans  of 
his  brigadier." — Doughty,  vol.  iii.  p.  28. 


486     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

for  it  and  must  be  answerable  to  his  Majesty  and  the  public  for 
the  consequences. 

I  have  the  Honor  to  be,  Sir,  etc., 

James  Wolfe. 

Townshend  was  briefly  dismissed.  He  had  no  longer  power  to 
try  Wolfe's  temper. 

To  Brigadier  Townshend. 

"  Sutherland,"  8^  o'clock, 

12th  Sept.,  1769. 
Sir, — General  Monckton  is  charged  with  the  first  landing  and 
attack  at  the  Foulon,  if  he  succeeds  you  will  be  pleased  to  give 
directions  that  the  troops  afloat  be  set  on  shore  with  the  utmost 
expedition,  as  they  are  under  your  Command,  and  when  3600 
men  now  in  the  Fleet  are  landed  I  have  no  manner  of  doubt  but 
that  we  are  able  to  fight  and  to  beat  the  French  Army,  in  which 
I  know  you  will  give  your  best  assistance. 

I  have  the  Honor,  etc.. 

Jam.  Wolfe. 
These  letters  to  Monckton  and  Townshend  were  being  written 
when  at  nine  the  first  division  of  the  troops  took  to  the  boats. 

Midnight  came  and  a  lantern  from  the  maintop  of  the 
Sutherland  was  shown  as  a  signal.  Noiselessly  did  the  troops  of 
the  first  division  get  into  the  flat-bottomed  boats.  An  hour  and 
a  half  later  they  were  ranged  round  the  Sutherland  ready  for  the 
signal  to  cast  off*.  The  tide  had  already  begun  to  ebb  as  Wolfe 
and  his  officers  clambered  into  the  craft  already  loaded  to  the 
water's  edge.  The  General  sat  in  the  stern  with  one  of  his  aides-de- 
camp, and  Major  Barre  by  his  side.  At  two  o'*clock  the  boats 
were  cast  off.  Stealthily,  scarce  needing  the  movement  of  an  oar, 
the  flotilla  carrying  1600  men  stole  down  the  river,  keeping  near 
the  north  bank.  Above  those  precipitous  heights  the  enemy  slept. 
Half-an-hour  later  the  armed  sloops  followed,  then  the  other 
frigates  and  transports. 

In  the  van  was  Wolfe,  at  the  supreme  crisis  of  his  life.  As  all 
sought  in  vain  to  pierce  the  darkness,  his  mind  travelled  across 
the  ocean  to  his  mother  and  his  betrothed.  He  thought  of  the 
brevity  of  life,  the  vanity  of  fame,  and  in  an  uprush  of  feeling  the 
stanzas  of  Gray''s  Elegy  came  to  his  lips — 

'f  The  hoast  of  heraldry,  the  pomp  of  power. 
And  all  that  beauty,  all  that  wealth  e'er  gave. 
Await  alike  the  inevitable  hour. 
The  paths  of  glory  lead  but  to  the  grave." 


GRAY'S   ELEGY  487 

There  was  a  pause.  All  were  silent.  "Gentlemen,  I  would 
sooner  have  written  that  poem  than  take  Quebec ! '''  ^ 

This  burst  of  sentiment  was  but  momentary.  The  boat  was 
rapidly  drawing  near  the  spot  he  had  marked  at  the  foot  of  the 
dark  heights.  Four  and  twenty  officers  under  Captain  Delaune  had 
volunteered  to  be  the  first  to  land.  Along  the  line  of  beach  the 
French  had  at  intervals  posted  sentries,  who  had  been  instructed  to 
expect  commissariat  boats  from  Montreal  that  night. 

But  a  little  incident  now  occurred  which  was  almost  fatal  to 
the  whole  enterprise.  In  mid-channel  lay  the  sloop  Hunter^ 
whose  captain,  informed  by  a  French  deserter,  was  at  that  moment 
more  on  the  alert  for  the  enemy''s  provision  boats  than  mindful  of 
what  the  military  Commander-in-Chief  was  doing.  The  route  of 
the  boats  lay  close  to  the  Hunter,  and  when  half  a  cable'^s  length 
away  Wolfe's  quick  ear  caught  the  sound  of  an  unwonted  stir 
aboard,  and  his  quick  suspicions  pointed  to  what  proved  true,  that 
the  crew  mistaking  him  for  the  enemy  were  on  the  point  of  turning 
their  guns  on  his  boat.  Another  ten  seconds  it  would  have  been 
too  late,  but  he  quietly  hailed  the  Hunter  and  explained. 

The  report  about  the  enemy's  provision  boats  was  too  useful 
not  to  be  turned  to  advantage. 

Before  De  Laune's  men  could  step  on  shore  they  were  challenged 
in  the  darkness.     "  Qui  vive !  "     Instantly  one  of  the  officers,  the 

1  It  seems  to  me  a  most  perverse  whim  on  the  part  of  certain  recent 
writers  to  seek  to  demoHsh  the  authenticity  of  this  anecdote.  It  rests  on  the 
unimpeachable  authority  of  Professor  John  Robison  of  the  University  of 
Edinburgh,  who  had  been  a  volunteer  in  Admiral  Saunders'  fleet.  Amongst 
others  to  whom  he  related  it  was  Sir  Walter  Scott,  who  conveyed  it  to  Southey. 
*'  I  have,"  he  wrote,  ''  repeatedly  heard  the  Professor  say  that  during  part  of 
the  passage  Wolfe  pulled  out  of  his  pocket  and  read  to  officers  around  (or 
perhaps,  repeated)  Gray's  celebrated  'Elegy  in  a  Country  Churchyard.'  I 
do  not  know  if  the  recitation  was  not  so  well  received  as  he  expected,  but  he 
said  with  a  good  deal  of  animation,  '  I  can  only  say.  Gentlemen,  that,  if  the 
choice  were  mine,  I  would  rather  be  the  author  of  these  verses  than  win  the 
battle  which  we  are  to  fight  to-morrow  morning.'  It  must  not  be  supposed 
that  this  was  a  matter  of  serious  election,  but  it  was  a  strong  way  of  express- 
ing his  love  of  literature.  I  have  heard  Mr.  Robison  tell  the  story  repeatedly, 
for  his  daughter  became  the  wife  of  my  intimate  friend  Lord  Erskine. " 

Mr.  Doughty  also  points  out  another  and  long-previous  authority  for  the 
anecdote. 

There  is  nothing  intrinsically  improbable  in  it,  and  it  is,  besides, 
very  characteristic.  Nor  does  it  reflect  upon  the  greatness  of  the  mission  of 
himself  and  his  men.  Carlyle  gets  at  the  heart  of  the  matter  when  he 
paraphrases,  in  his  fantastic  way,  Wolfe's  praise  of  the  "  Elegy  "  :  "  Oh,  these 
are  tones  of  the  Eternal  Melodies,  are  not  they.''  A  man  might  thank 
Heaven  had  he  such  a  gift :  almost  as  we  might  for  succeeding  here, 
gentlemen." — Frederick  the  Great ,  vol.  v.  p.  555. 


48B     LIFE   AND  LETTERS   OF    WOLFE 

younger  Simon  Fraser,  who  spoke  excellent  French,  responded, 
"  La  France.''''  "  A  quel  regiment  ?  "  demanded  one  of  the  sentries. 
"  De  la  Reme^^^  the  quick-witted  Highlander  made  answer.  "  We 
are  the  provision  boats.  But,  hush,  we  may  be  heard  by  the 
enemy's  ship  yonder.''  They  were  permitted  to  pass.  Quebec  and 
Beauport  were  on  the  brink  of  famine  ;  men  who  brought  the  army 
supplies  of  food  were  welcome  indeed. 

The  spot  which  Wolfe  had  hit  upon  for  a  landing  (then  called 
locally  Anse  du  Foulon,  now  Wolfe's  Cove)  is  a  small  inlet  made 
by  two  projecting  points  of  land  just  high  enough  to  be  dry  at 
high  tide.  From  this  point  the  clifF,  some  200  feet  in  height,  may 
be  gained  by  a  narrow,  zigzag  path  bordered  by  stunted  trees  and 
bushes.  But  even  this  path  had  been  filled  by  the  enemy  with 
obstructions. 

It  was  four  o'clock.  Wolfe,  the  first  man  to  leap  ashore,  after 
anxiously  scanning  the  heights,  said  to  De  Laune's  men  about 
him,  "  You  must  get  up,  my  lads,  as  you  can."  Some  of  the  boats 
had  overshot  the  mark,  but  as  all  had  to  clamber  up  the  face  of 
the  slope  as  they  could,  it  made  little  difference.  Up  to  the 
summit,  still  wrapped  in  silence,  clambered  De  Laune's  volunteers 
and  three  Light  Infantry  companies,  all  keeping  as  near  together 
as  they  could.  As  they  neared  the  top  the  enemy's  picquet  was 
aroused  and  Captain  Macdonald,  a  Highlander,  began  a  fresh 
parley  in  French.  But  the  troops  were  too  impatient  to  parley : 
they  flung  themselves  upon  the  French  sentries,  and  before  many 
shots  were  exchanged,  put  them  to  flight.  Two  batteries  were 
taken  in  reverse  before  they  had  given  much  trouble. 

All  this  while  Wolfe  was  at  the  bottom  of  the  slope.  No 
sooner  did  he  hear  the  discharge  of  weapons  and  the  ringing  cheers 
above  than,  by  his  orders,  the  rest  of  the  division  flung  themselves 
upon  the  face  of  the  cliff*,  and,  helped  by  the  bushes,  tore  a  way 
somehow  to  the  top.  There  they  joined  their  comrades,  who  had 
already  made  several  prisoners.^ 

Dawn  was  just  breaking  as  the  General  himself  climbed  the 
height,  and  gathered  around  him  his  1600  men.  Did  no 
fleeting  thought  come  to  him  as  he  stood  there  of  the  terrible 
risk  he  had  run?  From  the  plateau,  known  as  the  Heights  of 
Abraham,  he  could  discern  the  return  of  the  boats  laden  with  the 
second  division  commanded  by  Townshend.  By  this  time  the  path 
had  been  cleared,  and  an  ascent  was  made  double  file.     Then  the 

1  ''These  men  gave  Wolfe  some  valuable  information,  which  practically 
confirmed  the  truth  of  his  own  forecast  in  every  particular." — Wood,  p.  231. 


WiJLFE    AT    QUEBEC 
From  a  pencil  sketch  by  Capt.  Hervey  Smith,  in  the  possession  of  Lieut. -Col.  C.  A.  M.  Warde,  J.P. 


CLIMBING   THE   HEIGHTS  489 

bluejackets  hastened  across  the  river,  where  Burton  and  his 
1200  men  were  eager  to  embark.  Long  before  the  sun  arose 
Wolfe  had  4800  men  on  the  heights,  awaiting  the  onset  of  the 
astonished  enemy.  Each  man  carried  seventy  rounds  of  ammu- 
nition, but  the  labour  of  dragging  the  guns  up  the  cliff  was  heavy 
and  tedious,  so  that  only  one  had  gained  the  summit  when  the 
action  began.  Excited  and  eager,  but  preserving  the  strictest 
discipline,  they  stood,  while  Wolfe  examined  the  position  carefully. 
He  gave  the  order  to  march  in  files,  and  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham 
they  halted. 

No  sooner  had  Holmes  emptied  his  transports  than  he  swung 
his  squadron  down  the  river  to  Beauport,  where  the  arrival  of  the 
ships  made  Montcalm  suspect  an  attack  upon  his  position  there. 
Montcalm  had  spent  a  sleepless  night,  perplexed  at  tactics  he  could 
not  fathom.  He  had  taken  every  precaution  against  attack  at 
Montmorenci,  and  trusted  Bougainville  and  his  2000  troops  with 
the  task  of  defending  the  cliffs  above  the  city.  The  idea  of  a  force 
from  below  smashing  his  centre  never  occurred  to  him.  Between 
himself  and  the  city  lay  Vaudreuil,  who  had  promised  instantly  to 
report  any  news  from  the  outposts.  Montcalm  had  heard  firing  at 
Sillery  about  daybreak,  which  made  him  uneasy,  but  little  was  he 
prepared  for  the  tidings  which  now  burst  upon  him.  Several 
Canadian  picquets,  pale  and  disordered,  announced  that  the  whole 
British  army  was  parading  on  the  Plains  of  Abraham. 

The  news  seemed  preposterous.  As  the  French  General  got 
into  the  saddle  he  murmured  to  the  Chevalier  Johnstone  that  there 
must  be  some  foundation  for  the  rumour — a  small  party  of  British  had 
come  to  burn  a  few  houses  and  retire.  From  VaudreuiPs  quarters 
in  the  misty  morning  light  the  distant  tableland  behind  the  city 
was  visible,  and  there  upon  Montcalm"'s  astonished  sight  the  thin 
red  line,  so  often  figuring  in  British  history  and  romance,  stretched 
across  the  dull  emerald  of  the  heights.  "I  see  them,'"*  he  said 
bitterly,  in  a  low  voice,  "  where  they  ought  not  to  be.  This,  my 
friends,  is  a  serious  business." 

He  ordered  up  instantly  all  the  troops  that  could  be  spared 
from  the  Beauport  lines,  and  soon  thousands  of  men  were  hurrying 
pellmell  over  the  bridge  of  boats  that  traversed  the  St.  Charles, 
the  regiment  of  Guienne  in  the  van,  on  into  the  beleaguered  city. 
"  Since  they  have  got  to  the  weak  side  of  this  miserable  garrison," 
said  Montcalm,  "  we  must  give  battle  and  crash  them  before 
midday."  He  sent  ahead  1500  Canadian  militia  to  engage  the 
enemy  until  he  had  disposed  of  his  forces.     Messengers  galloped 


490     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

off  to  Bougainville,  at  Cap  Rouge  eight  miles  away,  to  come  to  his 
chieFs  assistance. 

On  the  approach  of  the  Canadian  militia,  Wolfe  drew  up  his 
army  in  battle  array.  ^ 

Here,  on  this  "  almost  ideal  open  battlefield,'"  ^  he  would  cast 
the  die  for  the  possession  of  Canada.  On  the  extreme  right,  near 
the  precipice,  slightly  wooded  near  the  brink,  he  placed  the  35th 
Regiment  and  the  Grenadiers  of  Louisbourg,  whose  impetuous 
conduct  at  Montmorenci  six  weeks  before  had  cost  so  dear.  The 
28th  continued  the  line  to  the  |43rd,  which,  with  the  47th, 
formed  the  centre.  On  the  left  the  58th  just  reached  the  brow  of 
the  ridge  overlooking  the  St.  Charles  Valley,  joined  on  the  right 
by  the  78th.  This  formed  the  First  Division,  which  Wolfe,  at 
the  head  of  the  Grenadiers,  commanded;  Monckton  commanded 
the  right,  Murray  the  centre. 

Behind  was  drawn  up  the  Second  Division  under  Townshend, 
consisting  of  the  15th  Regiment  and  two  battalions  of  the  60th,  or 
Royal  Americans.  As  a  reserve,  a  third  line  was  formed  by  Colonel 
Burton  with  the  48th  in  four  columns  of  two  companies  each,  some 
light  infantry  under  Colonel  Howe  covering  the  flank  and  rear. 
The  Grande  Allee,  or  road  to  Cap  Rouge,  passed  through  the 
centre  of  the  plain.  The  whole  of  these  dispositions  were  made  by 
Wolfe  with  unerring  judgment  and  great  celerity. 

Three-quarters  of  a  mile  away  lay  the  city''s  western  wall.  In 
the  interval  on  the  plain,  while  the  British  troops  were  being  drawn 

*  The  total  strength  was  4829  of  all  ranks,  and  2  guns. 

Major-general           ..........  1 

Brigadiers        ...........  3 

Divisional  Staff         ..........  9 

Louisbourg  Grenadiers — From  1st  Royals ;  l7th,  22nd,  40th   and 

45th  Regiments          .........  241 

16th — "  Amhersts,"  now  East  Yorkshire  Regiment          .         .         .  406 

28th — "  Bragg's,"  now  1st  Bn.  Gloucestershire       ....  421 

35th — "  Otway's/'  now  1st  Bn.  Royal  Sussex          ....  519 

43rd— '^  Kennedy's,"  now  1st  Bn.  Oxfordshire  Light  Infantry        .  327 

47th — "  Lascelle's,"  now  1st  Bn.  Loyal  North  Lancashire        .         .  360 

58th — "  Anstruther's,"  now  2nd  Bn.  Northamptonshire .         .         .  335 

48th—"  Webb's,"  now  1st  Bn.  Northamptonshire   ....  683 

2nd  Bn.  Royal  Americans — "  Monckton's,"  now  2nd  Bn.  King's 

Royal  Rifle  Corps 322 

3rd   Bn.  Royal  Americans — "Lawrence's,"   now  3rd  Bn.    King's 

Royal  Rifle  Corps 640 

78th—"  Phaser's,"  now  2nd  Bn.  Seaforth  Highlanders     ...  662 

4829 
2  Wood,  p.  234. 


AWAITING   THE   ONSET  491 

up,  the  advancing  sharpshooters  of  the  Canadian  militia  poured 
forth  a  harassing  fire  from  behind  scrub  and  thicket.  On  the 
flanking  woods  and  coppices  other  miHtiamen  and  Indians  were 
hidden.  Men  began  to  fall  so  fast  in  the  British  ranks  that  Wolfe 
advanced  some  light  infantry  to  drive  them  out.  At  seven  o'clock 
the  enemy  mustered  in  greater  numbers,  bringing  up  three  field 
guns  which  caused  some  mischief,  but  by  no  means  ruffled  the 
discipline  of  Wolfe's  men.  Colonel  Howe,  with  the  light  infantry 
men,  soon  cleared  the  coppices  at  the  point  of  the  bayonet.  The 
General,  we  are  told,  seemed  to  be  in  all  parts  of  the  field  at  once, 
instructing  and  encouraging  by  turns.  At  one  point  his  eye  fell 
on  a  captain  shot  through  the  lungs.  He  stopped  to  press  the 
hand  of  the  wounded  man,  told  him  not  to  give  up  hope,  and 
assured  him  of  leave  of  absence  and  early  promotion.  Nay,  more, 
at  such  a  critical  moment,  with  the  fate  of  Quebec  in  the  balance,  he 
send  an  aide-de-camp  with  a  message  to  General  Monckton  to 
carry  out  his  Avishes  in  case  he  himself  fell  in  the  action.  The 
captain  sui-vived  and  to  Monckton's  credit  the  promise  was  kept. 
Do  not  such  actions  as  these  yield  the  secret  of  Wolfe's  popularity 
with  his  men  and  show  why  his  memory  was  ever  cherished  as  the 
"  Soldier's  Friend  "  ? 

Thus  far  not  a  shot  had  been  fired  from  the  British  lines.  At 
eight  o'clock  the  heads  of  the  enemy's  columns  could  be  discerned 
ascending  the  slope  which  led  from  the  St.  Charles  to  the  Plains  of 
Abraham,  skirting  the  northern  ramparts  of  the  city.  After  halt- 
ing within  reconnoitring  distance  they  were  formed  by  their  leader 
into  three  powerful  divisions,  numbering  altogether,  exclusive  of 
Indians,  7,520  men.  On  the  right  were  one  half  of  the  Canadian 
militia,  supported  by  the  battalions  of  La  Saare  and  Languedoc, 
the  rest  of  the  militia  being  on  the  left  with  the  Royal  Roussillon 
Regiment.  In  the  centre,  commanded  by  Montcalm  himself 
mounted  on  a  black  charger,  were  the  regiments  of  Beam  and 
Guienne.  Although  the  Indians  were  present  on  the  field  in 
numbers  they  did  not  distinguish  themselves  by  much  fighting. 

Meanwhile,  Wolfe,  noting  that  Montcalm  was  making  an 
attempt  to  outflank  his  left,  ordered  Townshend  to  form  the  15th 
en  potence,  and  so  show  a  double  front  to  the  French  right. 

Bougainville,  though  far  distant,  had  sent  a  force  of  infantry 
and  a  troop  of  cavalry  to  attack  Wolfe's  rear-guard.  These  had 
been  repulsed  by  Townshend ;  while  in  front  the  sharpshooters  had 
also  been  compelled  to  fall  back. 

Realizing  the  value  of  a  brief  rest  after  such  heroic  exertions, 
he  then  told  his  men  to  lie  down.     Thus  they  remained  until  nine 


492     LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

o'clock,  when  seeing  the  French  army  at  last  in  motion,  at  a  signal 
they  sprang  to  their  feet.  At  the  same  time  the  solitary  gun  of 
the  British  opened  fire.  The  two  armies  were  barely  six  hundred 
yards  apart. 


HEIGHTS  OF  ABRAHAM 
QUEBEC  • 

13th.  Sept.  1759 


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wY]       Ldsce/fes\ 

Dn  ^Royal  Roussdion 


^olonial  Marines 
1  La  Sarre 

Wianguedoc 
^LaGuienne 


BraggsU 


Montreal 


PLAN   or  THE   BATTLE   OF   QUEBEC 


The  hands  of  the  great  clock  in  the  Basilica  pointed  to  five 
minutes  past  ten  when  the  French  advanced  with  loud  shouts,  and 
at  about  two  hundred  yards'  distance  began  firing  obliquely  towards 
the  extremities  of  the  British  line.  The  rain  had  ceased,  although 
the  sky  was  still  lowering.     Wolfe  had  given  the  strictest  orders 


A   TERRIBLE   VOLLEY  493 

that  not  a  single  shot  of  the  enemy  was  to  be  returned,  but  with 
shouldered  arms  as  if  on  parade  the  British  lines  stood  grim  and 
silent,  a  triumph  of  one  man's  superb  discipline.  When  a  soldier 
received  a  buQet  and  dropped,  his  fellows  closed  ranks  like  so 
many  machines.  Wolfe  himself  was  shot  in  the  wrist,  but  hastily 
binding  a  handkerchief  about  the  wound,  which  must  have  been 
agonizing  as  the  tendons  had  been  severed,  he  moved  along  the 
front  ranks,  exhorting  them  to  be  steady — to  stand  firm.  The 
enemy  was  less  than  forty  yards  away  after  pouring  in  a  full  first 
broadside. 

The  moment  for  the  British  had  come. 

"  Present — fire  ! "  rang  out  the  word  of  command,  and  like  a 
single  monstrous  shot  the  deadly  volley  thundered  out.  So  precise 
was  the  fire  of  those  three  front  ranks  into  the  oncoming  foe  that 
French  veterans  after  the  battle  said  they  had  never  known  any- 
thing like  it.  Bradley  calls  it  "  one  of  the  most  tremendous  and 
effective  volleys  that  had  ever  been  delivered  since  the  invention  of 
gunpowder.**'  The  advancing  columns  reeled  like  aspen  saplings 
caught  in  a  gust,  and  then  the  smoke  obscured  the  horror  of  what 
had  happened,  and  only  their  cries  of  agony  showed  how  remorse- 
less had  been  the  blow.  Before  the  white  clouds  cleared  away  the 
British  had  reloaded  and  repeatedly  fired.  The  French  were 
soon  seen  lying  in  heaps,  and  the  gaps  in  that  phalanx  that  came 
on  so  gallantly  a  second  before  were  far  wider  than  the  groups 
of  dazed  survivors.  General  de  St.  Ours  had  been  struck  dead ; 
de  Senerzegues,  the  second  in  command,  was  stretched  on  the 
ground  mortally  wounded. 

Less  than  fifteen  minutes  had  elapsed  since  the  enemy  had 
sounded  an  advance  ;  not  a  single  British  soldier  had  moved,  and 
yet  Montcalm's  trained  eye  must  have  told  him  .  that  all  was  lost. 
As  Wolfe  gave  the  order  to  charge,  the  whole  body  of  the  Canadian 
militia,  unused  to  fire  in  the  field,  broke  and  fled.  Thus  deserted, 
and  their  ranks  thinned,  the  veteran  battalions  of  Beam  and 
Guienne  could  hardly  keep  their  ranks.  Montcalm,  still  unhurt, 
galloping  hither  and  thither  did  something  to  allay  the  panic. 
But  his  charge  was  broken,  and  Wolfe,  at  the  head  of  his  grenadiers, 
is  coming  on.  The  wavering  foe  shall  feel  bayonet  as  well  as  bullet, 
and  with  gleaming  eyes  and  tense  muscles  the  British  advanced. 
A  conspicuous  figure  was  Wolfe  over  six  feet  high  in  his  bright 
new  uniform,  and  several  French  marksmen  had  already  marked 
him  for  destruction.  In  the  act  of  waving  his  sword  a  shot  struck 
him  in  the  groin — a  dangerous  wound — but  heedless  still  he  pressed 


494    LIFE  AND  LETTERS  OF   WOLFE 

on.  Nor  could  the  ardour  of  his  troops  be  restrained  as  they  saw 
the  French  give  way :  their  steady  pace  broke  into  a  run,  trampling 
over  dead  and  dying,  and  scouring  the  plain  before  them  of  every 
living  foe.  Most  of  the  attacking  column  was  now  a  mass  of 
fugitives,  although  here  and  there  a  stout  resistance  was  offered, 
in  which  the  British  suffered  severely. 

A  third  ball  smote  Wolfe  in  the  breast.  On  he  staggered  a  few 
paces,  trying  hard  to  keep  his  feet.  The  charging  grenadiers  swept 
past  him.  "  Support  me,"  he  gasped  out  to  Lieutenant  Brown  of 
the  Grenadiers  who  was  close  behind ;  "let  not  my  brave  fellows  see 
me  fall.  The  day  is  ours — keep  it.""  Before  Brown"'s  arm  could 
encircle  his  General's  waist  he  sank  down.  A  young  volunteer 
named  Henderson  and  a  private  soldier  were  close  at  hand ;  they 
rushed  forward,  and  these,  with  an  artillery  officer,^  lifted  up  the 
throbbing,  helpless  form  and  carried  it  a  short  distance  towards 
the  rear.  None  else  of  all  those  desperate,  battling  men  had  seen. 
The  three  bearers  reached  a  small  redoubt  which  the  enemy  had 
held  just  ere  dawn  that  day,  and  there  they  lay  their  stricken 
leader  down.  One  proposed  to  run  for  a  surgeon.  "It  is  needless,'*'' 
came  from  the  bloodless  lips,  "  it  is  all  over  with  me.'*'  Then  came 
a  stupor,  and  the  sorrowing  group  thought  him  dead.  There 
was  a  brief  pause,  ten  seconds  perhaps,  when  in  the  distance  a  cry 
was  heard  frpm  a  messenger  sent  to  the  rear :  "  They  nm — they 


run 


I  •••> 


The  dying  General  started  up  with  the  wide-open  gaze  of  one 
roused  from  slumber.  "  Who  run  ? ''"'  he  asked  earnestly.  Did  he 
for  a  fleeting  instant  think  his  men  had  been  by  some  miracle 
overborne  by  Montcalm  ?  "  The  enemy,  sir,'*''  came  the  answer. 
"Egad,  they  give  way  everywhere.'*''  At  this  the  young  hero 
summoned  all  his  strength.  "  Go  one  of  you,  my  lads,'*'  he  said, 
"  with  all  speed  to  Colonel  Burton,  and  tell  him  to  march  Webb''s 
regiment  down  to  the  St.  Charles  River,  and  cut  off"  the  retreat  of 
the  fugitives  to  the  bridge."  ^  He  then  turned  on  his  side,  and 
murmuring  "  Now  God  be  praised,  I  die  happy,'*'  in  a  few  moments 
expired. 

*  Colonel  Williamson. 

2  Needless  to  say,  Townsliend,  on  taking  command,  instantly  rescinded 
this  order.  This  account  of  Wolfe's  death  follows  Knox  in  every  important 
particular. 


«  1 

^  I 


I 


XXII 
CONCLUSION 

When  an  aide-de-camp  hastened  to  inform  Monckton  of  the 
leader's  fall  he  found  that  officer  stretched  on  the  ground  with  a 
severe  wound,  which  he  had  received  while  leading  Lascelles.^  The 
command  therefore  by  a  singular  chance  devolved  upon  Townshend, 
who  instantly  checked  the  disorder  into  which  the  troops  had 
lapsed  owing  to  their  ardour  for  the  fray.  Some  of  the  High- 
landers had  pursued  the  enemy  to  the  verge  of  the  St.  Charles 
River,  and  the  58th  had  actually  reached  the  St.  John's  gate  of 
the  city.  Into  these  victorious  pursuers  the  enemy,  still  master 
of  a  gun  or  two  entrenched  in  ambuscade,  poured  a  fusillade  of 
bullets,  and  continued  firing  until  the  copses  and  thickets  were 
cleared.  Townshend  therefore,  although  Quebec  might  then  and 
there  have  been  taken  by  storm,  sounded  the  recall.  He  was 
doubtless  justified,  for  in  the  clear,  warm  sunshine  which  now 
supervened,  the  white-coated  troops  of  Bougainville  were  seen 
approaching  the  British  rear  from  Cap  Rouge.  Townshend  re-formed 
his  battalions  into  line  and  opened  on  the  new  arrivals  with  a 
couple  of  their  own  field  pieces.  Bougainville,  on  his  part,  was 
quick  to  appreciate  the  altered  situation  of  affairs.  The  demon- 
stration of  the  victors  was  enough,  and  he  retreated  in  precipitation 
to  Cap  Rouge.  Townshend  did  not  follow,  but  set  about  entrench- 
ing his  position  and  getting  his  guns  up  to  bombard  the  city. 

At  the  moment  Wolfe  fell,  with  the  tide  of  fugitives  struggling 
to  reach  the  city  gates,  borne  along  on  his  black  charger  in  his 
own  despite  by  the  very  force  of  the  torrent,  was  the  luckless 
Montcalm.  As  he  drew  near  the  gates  a  shot,  perhaps  from  one 
of  his  own  men,  passed  through  his  body.  Although  the  blood 
flowed  in  a  crimson  stream  down  his  clothes  he  kept  his  seat,  and 
inside  the  city  was  assisted  from  his  horse  and  carried  to  a  convent. 
When  his  wound  was  examined  he  asked  the  surgeon  if  it  was 

1  The  wound  was  not  serious.  Three  days  later  Monckton  was  able  to 
write  Townshend  :  ''I  am  so  well  as  to  sit  up — and  never  in  better  health." 
Nevertheless,  Townshend  persisted  in  regarding  his  chief  as  an  invalid,  hurried 
through  the  terms  of  capitulation  on  his  own  account,  and  signed  them.  "  I 
did  suppose  I  should  see  the  capitulation  before  it  was  signed,"  complained 
MoncktOQ.  Townshend  took  this  as  an  affront,  and  insisted  on  going  home 
at  ©nee. — Townshend,  p.  248. 

495 


496     LIFE   AND   LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

mortal ;  the  surgeon  gave  a  reluctant  assent.  "  I  am  glad  of 
that,*"  said  Montcalm ;  "  I  shall  not  live  to  see  the  surrender  of 
Quebec"! 

But  the  surrender  could  not  be  long  postponed.  Within  the 
city  Ramesay  and  his  garrison  of  fifteen  hundred  men,  Vaudreuil 
and  his  cowering  band  of  fugitives  across  the  St.  Charles,  Bougain- 
ville and  his  three  thousand  were  now  of  no  avail  to  save  Quebec. 
Five  hundred  French  and  Canadians  were  dead  on  the  field :  a 
thousand  had  surrendered  or  were  made  prisoners. 

"I  will  neither  give  orders  nor  interfere  further,""  said  the 
stricken  Montcalm  to  the  commandant  of  the  garrison.  "  I  have 
business  to  attend  to  of  greater  moment  than  your  ruined  garrison 
and  this  wretched  country.  My  time  is  very  short,  so  pray  leave 
me.  I  wish  you  all  comfort  and  to  be  speedily  extricated  from 
your  present  perplexities." 

One  can  well  understand  the  words  and  the  bitter  reflection 
which  provoked  them.     On  the  following  day  he  died. 

Before  nightfall  on  the  17th,  four  days  after  the  battle,  a 
French  officer  with  a  flag  of  truce  and  proposals  of  surrender  came 
from  M.  de  Ramezy,  and  on  the  following  day  the  keys  of  Quebec 
were  delivered  up  to  Townshend.  So  fell  the  great  stronghold  of 
the  French  in  North  America. 

Let  us  return  to  the  mortal  remains  of  the  conqueror.  Hastily 
down  the  slope  was  the  body  borne  to  a  place  of  safety.  In 
the  log  book  of  the  Lowestoft  there  is  this  passage  under  date 
of  September  13  :  "At  11.0  was  brought  on  board  the  corpse  of 
General  Wolfe."  After  being  embalmed  it  was  transferred  to  the 
Royal  William  for  passage  to  England. 

When  the  army  first  learnt  of  the  death  of  its  beloved  leader, 
grief  showed  itself  above  all  other  feelings.     As  one  officer  wrote — 

"  Our  joy  at  this  success  is  inexpressibly  damped  by  the  loss  we 
sustain  of  one  of  the  greatest  heroes  that  this  or  any  other  age  can 
boast  of."  Another  wrote :  "  Our  loss  has  been  inconsiderable, 
separate  from  our  dear,  courageous,  yet  mild  Wolfe,  whose  fall 
added  revenge  to  intrepidity." 

^  In  the  battle  one  general,  one  captain,  six  lieutenants,  one  ensign,  three 
sergeants,  and  forty-five  rank  and  file  killed  ;  one  brigadier,  four  staff-officers, 
twelve  captains,  twenty-six  lieutenants,  ten  ensigns,  twenty-five  sergeants, 
four  drummers,  and  five  hundred  and  six  rank  and  file  wounded.  Of  the 
artillery  company,  one  gunner  was  killed  and  seven  were  wounded.  Amongst 
the  wounded  officers  were  Carleton  and  Barre'.  Barre  lost  an  eye,  and  his  sight 
was  so  severely  injured  that  he  subsequently  became  totally  blind. 


RESULTS   OF  THE  VICTORY       497 

On  the  14th  the  following  General  Orders  were  issued  by 
Townshend — 

General  Orders. 

Mth  September,  1759, 

Plains  of  Abraham. 

Parole — Wolfe.  Countersign — England. 

"  The  remaining  general  officers  fit  to  act  take  the  earliest 
opportunity  to  express  the  praise  which  is  due  to  the  conduct  and 
bravery  of  the  troops :  and  the  victory,  which  attended  it,  suffi- 
ciently proves  the  superiority  which  this  army  has  over  any 
number  of  such  troops  as  they  engaged  yesterday.  They  wish 
that  the  person  who  lately  commanded  them  had  survived  so 
glorious  a  day,  and  had  this  day  been  able  to  give  the  troops 
their  just  encomiums.  The  fatigues  which  the  troops  will  be 
obliged  to  undergo,  to  reap  the  advantage  of  this  victory,  will 
be  supported  with  a  true  spirit,  as  this  seems  to  be  the  period 
which  will  determine,  in  all  probability,  our  American  labours."" 

Whatever  it  may  have  been  morally  and  strategically — and 
volumes  have  been  written  upon  it  from  the  military  standpoint — 
politically  the  battle  of  Quebec  was  one  of  the  great  battles  of  the 
world.  By  adding  Canada  to  the  British  Empire  it  established 
the  supremacy  of  the  Anglo-Saxon  race  in  North  America.  But 
in  assessing  its  results  we  do  not  now  stop  there.  Who  then 
could  have  lifted  the  veil  and  discerned  that  on  the  Plains  of 
Abraham  were  sown  the  seeds  of  the  American  Republic  ?  Had 
Wolfe  not  then  perished  it  had  been  otherwise,  but  into  this  we 
may  not  enter  here.  "  The  infinite  significance  of  the  achieve- 
ment was,  of  course,'"*  says  Mr.  Bradley,  "  in  great  part  hidden 
from  the  eyes  of  those  who  shared  in  or  applauded  it."*"*  But  we 
see  now  more  clearly  as  the  years  of  this  twentieth  century  lapse, 
what  influence  the  battle  of  Quebec  had  on  the  history  of  mankind. 

There  has  arisen  of  latter  years  a  school  of  writers  in  Britain 
and  America  who,  while  appraising  at  its  highest  the  achievement 
of  the  13th  September,  1759,  urge  that  Wolfe  should  share  his 
glory  with  another — that  the  lam-el  wreath  placed  upon  his  brow 
by  the  suffrages  of  mankind  should  be  divided  in  twain,  the  second 
fragment  to  adorn  a  hero  of  greatness  fully  equal  to  his  own. 

It  is  not  to  Townshend,  or  Monckton,  or  Murray  that  the  new 
school  would  award  this  lofty  honour,  but  to  Wolfe's  naval 
colleague.  Vice- Admiral  Sir  Charles  Saunders.     It  is  enough,  per- 

K  K 


498    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

haps,  to  say  that  such  a  contention  would  have  surprised  none  so 
much  as  Saunders  himself,  who,  during  the  next  twelve  years  of  his 
life,  always  attributed  the  sole  merit  to  Wolfe  and  Wolfe  alone. 

If  Wolfe  and  the  siege  had  failed,  Saunders  would  have  had  no 
blame,  which  is  the  crucial  test.  The  responsibility  of  the  naval 
commander  for  success  or  the  reverse  was  very  trifling.  Nor  were 
there  any  French  ships  or  sailors  to  meet  in  the  river.  The  fleet 
loyally  co-operated  and  showed  great  skill  in  an  awkward  enter- 
prise ;  but  their  part  was  of  an  utterly  different  kind  and  their 
risks  slight  compared  to  those  of  Wolfe  and  his  soldiers.  More- 
over, the  stroke  of  genius,  daring,  and  good-fortune  that  comprises 
the  whole  incident,  with  its  far-reaching  effects,  is  surely  a  thing 
to  itself.  Nor  is  it  in  the  least  relevant  that  there  were  10,000 
sailors  on  board  the  ships  in  the  river,  and  only  9,000  troops,  or 
that  one,  two,  or  three  naval  officers  had  senior  rank  to  Wolfe. 
One  might  as  well  assert  that  Waterloo  was  won  by  sea  power.  If 
it  had  not  been  for  Nelson  and  his  successors,  the  British  army 
could  never  have  been  transported  across  the  Channel. 

There  is  something  else  to  be  added  before  we  take  a  final  leave 
of  the  scene  of  Wolfe's  glorious  death  and  victory.  How  was  his 
memory  regarded  by  those  of  his  officers  who,  while  he  lived,  had 
been  jealous  of  his  control  and  doubtful  of  his  genius  ?  Monckton, 
his  second  in  command,  was  loyal,  but  it  will  ever  remain  a  blot 
upon  the  fame  of  Townshend  and  Murray  that  their  loyalty  was 
chiefly  lip  service,  and  each  has  to  meet  the  accusation  of  attempt- 
ing to  depreciate  their  late  leader  to  advance  their  own  repute. 
The  moment  the  capitulation  had  been  signed — a  capitulation 
whose  terms  reflected  little  credit  upon  Townshend — the  latter  was 
anxious  to  proceed  at  once  to  England  and  there  parade  his  own 
part  in  the  achievement.  But  Monckton,  who  was  naturally  a 
little  piqued  at  the  way  Townshend  had  rushed  through  the  capitu- 
lation, was  opposed  to  Townshend's  departure  and  told  him  so. 
It  then  appeared  that  Townshend  feared  that  Wolfe's  partisans, 
such  as  Carleton,  Barre,  and,  he  suspected,  Saunders,  would  make 
too  much  of  the  brigadier's  opposition  to  the  coup  which  had  led 
to  victory,  and  he  wished  to  counteract  it  in  person.  This  view 
he  communicated  to  Murray,  who,  doubtless  feehng  that  he  was 
open  to  the  same  charge,  wrote — 

Since  so  black  a  lie  was  propagated  I  think  myself  very  happy 
that  you  will  be  on  the  spot  to  contradict  whatever  ignorance  or 
faction  may  suggest. 


JOY   IN  ENGLAND  499 

I  have  no  copy  of  the  paper  I  sent  by  you  to  General 
Wolfe  concerning  his  scheme  of  landing  between  Point  au 
Tremble  and  St.  Augustin,  but  the  public  orders  are  a  sufficient 
proof  of  his  intention  to  do  it,  and  likewise  of  the  suddenness  of 
the  thought  of  landing  when  we  did.  Indeed  his  orders  through- 
out the  campaign  show  little  stability,  stratagem  or  fixed 
resolution  ;  I  wish  his  friends  had  not  been  so  much  our  enemies, 
his  memory  would  probably  have  been  dearer  to  his  country  than 
now  it  can  be.  We  are  acting  on  the  defensive,  you  have  the 
execution  of  the  plan,  and  I  am  well  persuaded  you  will  manage 
it  with  as  much  tenderness  to  the  memory  of  the  poor  General 
as  the  nature  of  things  will  admit  of. 

I  find  I  am  not  to  have  the  honour  of  a  visit  from  you  so  I 
must  take  the  opportunity  of  wishing  you  a  good  voyage  and  a 
happy  meeting  with  your  friends.^ 

So  Townshend  and  Murray  believed  themselves  to  be  acting 
"  on  the  defensive  "  in  the  execution  of  their  plan  of  belittling  their 
leader  and  exalting  themselves.  Townshend's  aristocratic  friends 
in  England  lost  no  opportunity  of  pressing  him  forward.  Poets 
came  forward  to  sing  his  praises,  painters  solicited  the  honour  of  a 
sitting  from  the  "second  hero  of  Quebec.""  On  the  news  of  the 
battle  the  Adjutant-Gen.  Lytellton  wrote  to  Pitt — 

The  loss  of  Wolfe  is  ever  to  be  lamented,  but  Providence 
gives  not  the  cup  of  joy  unmixed,  and  were  it  not  for  a  little 
ingredient  of  bitterness,  it  would  be  too  intoxicating.  Town- 
shend still  remains,  and  many  a  gallant  officer  animated  by  your 
spirit  and  by  you  brought  forward  into  action. 

Whether  Townshend  was  really  animated  by  Pitt's  spirit  we 
leave  the  reader  of  the  foregoing  narration  to  judge. 

Only  three  days  after  the  receipt  of  Wolfe's  discouraging 
dispatch  to  Holderness,  penned  four  days  before  the  battle,  came 
the  news  of  the  victory.  A  Gazette  extraordinary  was  immediately 
issued,  and  the  nation  went  wild  with  joy  over  the  glorious  tidings, 
so  quickly  succeeding.  No  wonder  all  Britain  was  stirred  by  the 
thrilling  story,  that  ten  thousand  bonfires  blazed,  that  bells  pealed 
and  cannon  fired  salvoes  of  joy. 

The  effect  of  so  joyful  news  (wrote  Burke),  immediately  on 
such   a   dejection,   and   then   the   mixture   of  grief  and   pity 

^  Townshend. 

E  E  2 


500    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

which  attended  the  public  congratulations  and  applauses,  was  very- 
singular  and  affecting.  The  sort  of  mourning  triumph  that 
manifested  itself  on  that  occasion  did  equal  honour  to  the  memory 
of  the  General  and  to  the  humanity  of  the  nation. 

He  added — 

However  glorious  this  victory  was,  and  however  important  in 
its  consequences,  it  must  be  admitted  that  it  was  very  dearly 
bought.  Soldiers  may  be  raised;  officers  will  be  formed  by 
experience  ;  but  the  loss  of  a  genius  in  war  is  a  loss  that  we  know 
not  how  to  repair.  The  death  of  Wolfe  was  indeed  grievous  to 
his  country,  but  to  himself  the  most  happy  that  can  be 
imagined,  and  the  most  to  be  envied  by  all  those  who  have  a 
true  relish  for  military  glory.^ 

Walpole''s  words  have  been  often  quoted — 

The  incidents  of  dramatic  fiction  could  not  be  conducted 
with  more  address  to  lead  an  audience  from  despondency  to 
sudden  exultation,  than  accident  prepared  to  excite  the  passions  of 
a  whole  people.  They  despaired,  they  triumphed  and  they  wept, 
for  Wolfe  had  fallen  in  the  hour  of  victory.  Joy,  curiosity, 
astonishment,  were  painted  on  every  countenance ;  the  more  they 
enquired  the  higher  their  admiration  rose.  Not  an  incident  but 
was  heroic  and  affecting.^ 

On  the  14th  of  November  Parliament  met,  and  a  week  later  the 
House  of  Commons  resolved  to  address  the  King,  praying  that  his 
Majesty  would  order  a  monument  to  be  erected  in  Westminster 
Abbey  to  the  memory  of  Wolfe.  At  the  same  time,  the  thanks  of 
the  House  were  given  to  the  Admirals  and  Generals  employed  in 
"  the  glorious  and  successful  expedition  against  Quebec."  Pitt  pro- 
posed the  address,  and  in  a  "  low  and  plaintive  voice,  pronounced  an 
elaborate  panegyric  on  the  dead  warrior.''  "  It  was  perhaps,''  accord- 
ing to  Walpole,  "the  worst  harangue  he  ever  uttered.  His 
eloquence  was  too  native  not  to  suffer  by  being  crowded  into  a 
ready  mould.  The  parallels  which  he  drew  from  Greek  and  Roman 
story  did  but  flatten  the  pathetic  of  the  topic.  .  .  .  The  horror  of 
the  night,  the  precipice  scaled  by  Wolfe,  the  empire  he  with  a 
handful  of  men  added  to  England,  and  the  glorious  catastrophe  of 

1  Annual  Register,  1769,  p.  43. 

2  Memoirs  of  the  Reign  of  George  II,  vol.  ii.  p.  385. 


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I . 

ADMIRAL   SIR  JOHN   JERVIS   (EARL   OF   ST.    VINCENT) 
From  the  painting  hy  Hoppner 


HIS  MOTHER'S   GRIEF  501 

contentedly  terminating  his  life  when  his  fame  began, — ancient 
story  may  be  ransacked,  and  ostentatious  philosophy  thrown  into 
the  account,  before  an  episode  can  be  found  to  rank  with  Wolfe's."  ^ 
The  Prime  Minister's  motion  was  seconded  by  Alderman  Beckford, 
who  remarked,  that  in  the  appointment  of  Wolfe  neither  parlia- 
mentary interest,  family  influence,  nor  aristocratic  views  had  been 
consulted,  and  that  the  General  and  the  Minister  seemed  to  have 
been  made  for  each  other. 

Nor  did  Great  Britain  alone  exult.  Her  transatlantic  colonies, 
where  the  shadow  of  the  French  had  long  been  laid  across  New 
England  and  the  northern  settlements,  exulted  also.  The  colony 
of  Massachusetts,  in  the  exuberance  of  the  moment,  voted  a  marble 
statue  to  the  hero,  to  be  erected  in  Boston,  a  monument  was  actually 
erected  in  New  York,  and  a  hundred  pulpits  resounded  with 
panegyric  and  congratulation. 

From  this  we  turn  to  a  different  scene — a  scene  not  of  joy  but 
of  sorrow.  At  Blackheath,  in  the  mansion  where  the  young  hero 
had  spent  so  many  pleasant  hours,  his  widowed  mother  received  the 
tidings  of  the  battle  which  robbed  her  of  her  only  son.  That  night 
while  other  towns  were  radiant  with  bonfires  and  illuminations, 
Blackheath  was  dark,  for  there  the  townsfolk  respected  the  mother's 
grief,  and  Westerham,  which  gave  him  birth,  likewise  refrained 
from  expressing  the  national  joy.  From  Squerryes  John  Warde 
wrote  to  his  brother  George,  then  Lieutenant-Colonel  of  the 
4th  Dragoons :  "  Amidst  the  public  great  events,  you  know  I  have 
lost  too  much  in  your  friend  to  partake  of  the  fulness  of  its  joy.  I 
sincerely  condole  with  you  on  the  loss  of  poor  Wolfe ;  but,  as  I 
know  you  always  foresaw  some  such  calamity  from  his  too  great 
intrepidity,  conclude  you  received  the  fatal  event  with  less  surprise. 
You  will  not,  I  believe,  subscribe  to  my  opinion  ;  but,  honourable 
as  the  expedition  proves,  I  rejoice  you  was  not  there.  To  have 
seen  your  friend  fall  would  have  been  bitter  to  yourself,  and  to 
have  shared  his  fate  how  grievous  to  us  all !  His  poor  mother 
bears  it  heavily  ;  how  should  she  do  otherwise  ?  And  the  public 
funeral  which  is  talked  of  for  his  remains  will  (if  true)  possibly 
overset  her  quite."" 

By  this  time  the  remains  of  the  hero  were  on  the  bosom  of  the 
broad  Atlantic. 

Leaving  ten  regiments  or  most  of  Wolfe's  army  behind  to 
garrison  Quebec,  Saunders  and  the  fleet  sailed  on  the  18th  of  Octo- 
ber for  England.      Amidst  the  solemn  booming  of  cannon,  the 

1  Memoirs  of  the  Reign  oj  George  11,  vol.  ii.  p.  393. 


502    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

Royal  William^  with  the  flag  of  England  flying  at  half-mast,  its 
cross  of  St.  George  scarce  ruddier  than  the  crimson  maples  which 
lined  the  St.  Lawrence,  bore  slowly  down  the  mighty  stream  the 
corpse  of  the  late  leader.  On  the  16th  of  the  following  month 
she  anchored  at  Spithead,  and  early  next  morning,  to  the  firing  of 
signal  guns,  the  coffin  was  lowered  into  a  twelve-oared  barge,  towed 
by  two  other  boats  and  followed  by  a  funeral  cortege  of  twelve 
others.  Sombrely,  silently  but  for  the  booming  of  the  minute 
guns  of  the  fleet,  it  was  towed  to  shore  at  Portsmouth,  where  the 
regiment  of  Invalides  and  the  company  of  Artillery  in  the  garrison 
received  it.  The  coffin  was  put  into  a  travelling-hearse,  attendants 
in  a  mourning  coach  following. 

The  two  faithful  aides-de-camp.  Captains  Hervey  Smith  ^  and 
Thomas  Bell,  joined  the  cavalcade,  the  troops  marching  with  arms 
reversed,  and  the  bells  tolling  muffled  peals  and  thousands  of  spec- 
tators paying  a  last  tribute  of  respect  to  the  illustrious  dead. 
From  Landport  gate  the  hearse  and  coaches  passed  through  the 
ranks  of  the  halted  escort  and  proceeded  on  to  Blackheath  alone. 
In  the  Wolfe  mansion  in  the  wide  hall  it  lay  for  a  whole  day  in 
state,  its  black  velvet  pall  heaped  with  laurel  wreaths,  and  on  the 
20th  was  the  body  of  James  Wolfe  laid  beside  his  father's  in  the 
family  vault  of  the  parish  church  of  St.  Alfege  at  Greenwich.  Not 
until  149  years  later  was  a  simple  bronze  tablet  affixed  above  to 
tell  the  chance  passer-by  whose  ashes  lay  mouldering  below. 

No  sooner  did  it  become  noised  abroad  that  the  dead  General  was 
the  affianced  husband  of  Miss  Lowther,  than  many  directed  their 
condolences  to  that  young  lady,  then  on  a  visit  to  Raby  Castle.^ 
There  is  a  letter  from  Lady  Mary  Wortley  Montagu  to  Miss  Bute, 
in  which  she  says, "  General  Wolfe  is  to  be  lamented  but  not  pitied. 
I  am  of  your  opinion  that  compassion  is  only  owing  to  his  mother 
and  his  intended  bride,  who  I  think  the  greater  sufferer,  however 
sensible  I  am  of  a  parent's  tenderness.  Disappointments  in  youth 
are  those  which  are  felt  with  the  greatest  anguish,  when  we  are  all 
in  expectation  of  happiness  perhaps  not  to  be  found  in  life." 

^  Afterwards  Sir  Hervey  Smith,  Bart.,  died  1811.  See  notice  in  Examiner, 
October  22,  1811. 

^  "  It  is  curious  coincidence,"  remarks  Mr.  Bradley,  "that the  heroines  of 
both  Wolfe's  love-affairs  should  have  come,  and  that  from  no  connection  with 
each  other,  from  the  same  group  of  families  in  a  remote  corner  of  England, 
Isell  Hall,  whence  came  Miss  [Lawson,  is  still  a  residence  of  the  family. 
Meaburn  Hall,  Kate  Lowther's  early  home,  though  now  a  somewhat 
inaccessible  farmhouse,  between  Shap  and  Appleby,  on  the  Lowther  estates, 
remains  a  most  interesting  and  picturesque  specimen,  both  inside  and  out, 
of  the  Tudor  manor  house  of  the  Border  coMntvy"— Fight  with  France,  p.  317. 


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KATHERINE   LOWTHER  503 

The  miniature  which  Wolfe  had  the  night  before  his  death 
entrusted  to  his  friend  Jervis  was  duly  carried  to  his  mother  by  his 
aide-de-camp,  Captain  Bell.  According  to  the  request  made  in 
his  will,  she  had  it  set  in  brilliants  and  restored  to  Miss  Lowther. 
This  was  not,  however,  until  the  following  spring.  Meanwhile  Miss 
Lowther  addressed  a  letter  of  condolence  to  the  bereaved  mother's 
late  companion  at  Bath,  Miss  Aylmer,  intended  for  Mrs.  Wolfe''s 
eyes.  This  drew  forth  a  lengthy  reply — not,  however,  from  the  lady 
addressed  but  from  another  friend  now  with  her  at  Blackheath, 
Mrs.  Scott.     To  this  Miss  Lowther  replied. 

Miss  Lowther  to  Miss  Scott. 

Raby  Castle,  VQlh  December,  1759. 

Madam, — Miss  Aylmer''s  ha\ang  once  answered  a  letter  I 
wrote  Mrs.  Wolfe,  drew  me  into  the  error  of  addressing  her  again ; 
but  I  now  desire  you  to  accept  my  sincere  thanks  for  your  oblig- 
ing tho""  melancholy  epistle.  I'm  not  surprised  to  hear  the 
patient  sufferer  submits  with  calmness  and  resignation  to  this 
severe  trial,  because  I  could  never  doubt  the  magnanimity  of 
General  Wolfe's  mother ;  but  I  wish,  if  her  health  would  permit, 
she  could  by  degrees  be  brought  to  bear  new  objects ;  perhaps 
they  might  call  her  attention  one  moment  from  the  melancholy 
subject  which  engrosses  it,  and  in  time  dissipate,  though  not 
efface  or  drive  away  from  the  memory  so  just  and  deep  a  sorrow : — 
not  that  I  shall  ever  attempt  intruding  my  company,  since  (though 
I  feel  for  her  more  than  words  can  express,  and  should,  if  it  was 
given  me  to  alleviate  her  grief,  gladly  exert  every  power  which 
nature  or  compassion  has  bestowed) — ^yet  I  feel  we  are  the  last 
people  in  the  world  who  ought  to  meet. 

I  knew  not  my  picture  was  to  be  set ;  but  I  beg.  Madam,  you 
will  tell  Mrs.  Wolfe  I  entreat  her  to  take  her  own  time  about 
giving  the  necessary  directions.  I  can't  as  a  mark  of  his  affec- 
tions, refuse  it ;  otherwise  would  willingly  spare  myself  the  pain 
of  seeing  a  picture  given  under  far  different  hopes  and  expect- 
ations. Mrs.  Wolfe  will,  I  hope,  accept  my  acknowledgments 
for  her  good  wishes,  and  that  Almighty  God  may  comfort  and 
support  her,  is  the  earnest  prayer  of.  Madam, 

Your  obliged,  humble  servant, 

K.    LOWTHEE. 

A  tradition  is  mentioned  by  Warburton  that  Miss  Lowther, 
who   six  years   later   became   Duchess  of  Bolton,  "always  wore, 


504    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

henceforth,  a  pearl   necklace   which   he  [Wolfe]  had   given   her, 
covered  with  black  velvet,  in  memory  of  the  departed." 

The  foundation  for  the  story  is  probably  that  the  young  lady 
was  loath  to  parade  upon  her  person  a  portrait  of  herself,  but 
exhibited  the  jewelled  miniature  with  a  black  velvet  cover.^ 

Mrs.  Wolfe  was  a  woman  cast  in  the  antique  mould.  Although 
she  could  not  bring  herself  to  reply  to  letters  of  condolence,  she 
was  not  blind  either  to  the  dignity  or  the  duties  of  her  position  as 
mother  and  chief  surviving  representative  of  her  celebrated  son. 
On  November  6  she  addressed  a  letter  to  Chatham,  obserring, 
"  As  you  did  my  dear  son  the  honour  to  entrust  him  with  so  great 
and  important  an  office  as  the  taking  of  Quebec,  which  you.  Sir, 
planned,  and  he  executed,  I  hope  to  his  Majesty's,  your  and  his 
country''$  satisfaction,  though  to  my  irreparable  loss,  it  occurs  to 
me  that  there  may  be  some  papers  or  orders  of  yours  relating  to 
the  Government  service  which  will  come  to  me.  If  you  will  honour 
me  with  your  commands,  I  shall  send  them  by  a  faithful  and  trusty 
gentleman,  who  carries  this,  Lieutenant  Scott ;  and  no  eye  shall 
see  them  but  your  own.'"' 

But  it  was  over  a  fortnight  before  the  papers  reached  her  at 
the  hands  of  Captain  Bell,  who  no  doubt  thought  he  was  doing  his 
duty  by  examining  and  sorting  them  beforehand,  not  realizing 
either  the  capacity  or  the  imperiousness  of  the  old  lady  at 
Blackheath.  She  was  as  angry  as  if  a  slight  had  been  intentionally 
put  upon  her. 

Her  patience  had  much  to  endure.  It  will  be  recalled  that 
Wolfe  had  made  a  will  disposing  of  some  seven  or  eight  thousand 
pounds  which  he  supposed  he  had  inherited  on  the  death  of  his 
father.  It  appeared,  however,  that  the  old  General,  seeing  his  son 
well  and  profitably  employed  in  the  service,  had  given  his  wife  a 
life  interest  in  his  small  fortune,  which,  as  her  health  was  but  poor, 
seemed  to  offer  but  little  injustice  to  his  son.  When  the  nature 
of  James's  will  was  revealed,  Mrs.  Wolfe  once  again  addressed 
Chatham. 

1  Wright  made  every  endeavour  to  discover  the  existence  of  this  miniature, 
but  in  vain.  Lord  Barnard  of  Raby  Castle  courteously  writes  me  :  "  The 
miniature  now  at  Raby  is  always  considered  to  be  a  portrait  of  the  Duchess  of 
Bolton,  by  Cosway.  It  has  some  hair  at  the  back,  and  is  mounted  in  a  gilt 
metal  frame  set  with  stones.  At  the  time  Katherine  Lowther  wrote  the  letter 
to  Mrs.  Wolfe,  she  was  no  doubt  staying  with  her  sister  Margaret  Countess 
of  Darlington."  The  Duchess  of  Bolton's  daughter  married  her  cousin.  Lord 
Darlington  of  Raby,  who  became  Duke  of  Cleveland  and  ancestor  of  Lord 
Barnard.  The  number  of  stones  corresponds  with  the  jeweller's  bill  at 
Squerryes. 


HIS   MOTHER'S   APPEAL  505 

Mrs.  Wolfe  to  Chatham. 

Blackheath,  November  SOth,  1769. 

Sir. — The  great  honour  your  letter  of  the  28th  of  Nov.  does 
me,  has  given  me  resolution  which  no  other  consideration  could 
do  to  make  an  application  which  I  hope  you  will  not  disprove. 
My  dear  son,  not  knowing  the  disposition  his  father  had  made 
of  his  fortmie — which  was  wholly  settled  on  me  for  life  and 
magnified  by  fame  greatly  beyond  what  it  really  is — has  left  to 
his  friends  more  than  a  third  part  of  it ;  and  though  I  should 
have  the  greatest  pleasure  imaginable  in  discharging  these 
legacies  in  my  lifetime,  I  cannot  do  it  without  distressing  myself 
to  the  highest  degree.  My  request  to  you,  good  and  great  Sir, 
is  that  you  will  honour  me  with  your  instructions  how  I  may  in 
the  properest  manner  address  His  Majesty  for  a  pension  to 
enable  me  to  fulfil  the  generous  and  kind  intentions  of  my  most 
dear  lost  son  to  his  friends,  and  to  live  like  the  relict  of  General 
Wolfe  and  General  Wolfe's  mother.  I  hope,  Sir,  you  will  pardon 
this  liberty.     I  have  the  honour  to  be,  etc.,  etc. 

Chatham  to  Mrs.  Wolfe. 

St.  James's  Square,  Jantmry  17,  1760. 
Madam. — I  think  myself  much  favoured  by  your  letter 
wherein  you  are  pleased  to  desire  my  advice  in  a  matter  that 
concerns  your  ease.  Had  I  more  than  information  in  my  power 
to  offer  on  a  subject  so  interesting,  I  beg  you  will  be  assured. 
Madam,  that  your  trouble  would  be  rendered  very  short,  as  well 
my  own  satisfaction  become  very  sensible.  But  the  thing  you 
are  pleased  to  mention  being  totally  in  the  Duke  of  Newcastle''s 
department,  I  can  only  desire  leave  to  apprise  you  that  it  is  to 
his  Grace  that  all  applications  of  such  a  nature  are  to  be 
addressed.  If  you  shall  judge  proper  to  take  that  step  (with 
regard  to  which  I  cannot  venture  to  advise),  you  will  command, 
in  that,  as  well  as  every  other  occasion,  all  good  offices  and 
sincerest  endeavours  for  your  service  from  him  who  has  the 
honour  ever  to  remain,  with  the  truest  respect,  Madam, 
Your  most  obedient  and  most  humble  servant, 

Wm.    PiTT.l 

It  only  remains  to  add  that  the  hero's  mother  was  not  only 
imsuccessM  in  this  application  to  the  Government,  but  also  in 
another  transaction  which   redounds  little  to  the  credit  of  the 

*  From  original  at  Squerryes  Court. 


506    LIFE  AND   LETTERS   OF  WOLFE 

Government  or  the  nation.  It  was  supposed  that  Wolfe,  being 
a  Commander-in-Chief  of  an  expedition,  would  be  entitled  to  a 
Commander-in-Chief's  pay.  Not  until  February  1761  were  the 
warrants  made  out  for  the  payment  of  the  staff  of  the  Quebec 
expedition.  As  Mrs.  Wolfe's  agent,  Fisher  based  his  demand  at 
the  rate  of  d^lO  a  day  from  the  date  of  his  last  commission  until 
his  death — a  matter  of  nearly  ^2500.  Promptly  was  the  claim 
rejected  by  the  War  Office,  then  presided  over  by  Charles 
Townshend,  a  brother  of  Wolfe's  brigadier.  Acting  according  to 
the  counsel  of  friends,  amongst  whom  were  Lord  Shelburne  and 
Sir  Robert  Rich,  Mrs.  Wolfe  addressed  a  memorial  to  the  young 
king,  George  III.  But  the  representations  of  Barrington  were 
successful,  and  after  a  melancholy  correspondence  lasting  three 
years,  Townshend's  successor,  Wellbore  Ellis,  wrote  finally  to  say 
that  the  application  was  refused.^ 

It  is  to  be  feared  the  old  lady  got  a  reputation  for  eccentricity 
by  the  tenacity  with  which  she  clung  to  her  claims  and  to  the 
memory  of  her  son  and  husband. 

In  March  1760,  while  retaining  her  Blackheath  residence,  Mrs. 
Wolfe  rented  a  house  in  Trim  Street,  Bath,  where  she  caused 
some  military  emblems  to  be  cast  to  adorn  the  fac^ade,  and  gathered 
together  many  portraits  and  trophies  of  father  and  son.  In  her 
correspondence,  which  for  some  weeks  was  voluminous,  she  had 
been  assisted  at  first  by  her  nephew.  Captain  Edward  Goldsmith, 
to  whom,  on  his  leaving  her  to  return  to  Limerick,  she  presented 
with  the  c^^lOOO  willed  him  by  his  cousin.^ 

At  Blackheath  her  neighbours,  the  Masons  and  Scotts,  visited  her 
frequently,  but  her  closest  adviser  was  her  son's  early  tutor  and  the 
friend  of  the  family,  the  Rev.  Francis  Swinden,  F.R.S.,  Rector  of 
StifFord,  Essex,  and  master  of  the  school  in  Greenwich.  Swinden 
died  less  than  three  months  before  his  friend,  who  passed  away  on 
September  26,  1764.     She  had   previously  (February   25,    1763) 

1  It  is  only  fair  to  mention  Barrington' s  contention  that  the  payment 
asked  for  on  behalf  of  one  who  was  not  technically  a  Commander-in-Chief 
would  set  a  precedent  whereby  a  dozen  other  claims  would  be  lodged  at  the 
War  Office. 

^  Goldsmith's  first  letter  after  his  return  to  Ireland  was  from  Dublin, 
where  he  spent  some  time  endeavouring  to  obtain  half-pay,  but  was  unsuc- 
cessful. He  suffered  much  from  the  ague,  on  which  account  he  left  Limerick 
in  1761,  and  settled  at  Finglass,  near  Dublin,  where  he  died  in  1764.  His 
letters,  which  amused  his  aunt,  exhibit  a  degree  of  humour  not  unlike  that  of 
his  cousin  Oliver.  They  were  sealed  with  Wolfe's  seals,  one  of  which  bears 
the  family  arms— three  wolves'  heads  erased,  with  chevron,  etc.— the  other  a 
female  head. 


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-/*^^^ 
#7^. 


INSTKUCTIONS   FOR   MKS.    WOLFE  S    BURIAL 
From,  the  original  memorandum  at  Squerryes  Court 


NATIONAL  MONUMENT  TO  WOLFE   507 

made  a  will,  and  in  a  curious  document,  still  extant,  given  directions 
as  to  her  remains  and  obsequies. 

Her  property  after  her  death  was  found  to  be  worth  some 
.£'17,000,  the  surviving  executors  of  her  will  being  Colonels 
Carleton  and  Warde.  Besides  the  bequests  made  by  her  son,  she 
bequeathed  .^SOOO  to  her  nephew  William  Burcher,^  and  <£2000 
to  the  children  of  another  of  the  old  General's  sisters  named 
Langley,  and  various  legacies  to  her  own  relations,  friends  and 
domestics.  She  also  left  .£1000  to  the  Incorporated  Society  for 
Promoting  Protestant  Schools  in  Ireland,  £500  to  Bath  Hospital, 
.£500  to  Bromley  College,  and  lesser  sums  to  other  charities. 
What  remained  it  was  her  wish  should  be  given  to  the  widows  and 
families  of  poor  officers  who  had  served  under  her  son.  It  is  a 
curious  fact  that  none  applied,  and  ten  years  later  the  executors, 
believing  it  to  be  consonant  to  her  wishes,  handed  over  the  amount, 
c£3000,  to  the  Hibernian  School  for  Soldiers'  Sons. 

The  monument  of  white  marble  which  Parliament  had  decreed, 
the  commission  for  which  was  given  to  the  sculptor  Wilton,  was 
not  unveiled  until  1773.  It  is  in  a  sequestered  situation  in  the 
north  transept  of  Westminster  Abbey.  A  large  oval  tablet  in  the 
middle  of  the  sarcophagus  contains  this  inscription — 

TO    THE    MEMORY    OF 
JAMES    WOLFE, 

MAJOR-GENERAL   AND   COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF 

OF    THE    BRITISH    LAND    FORCES 

ON    AN    EXPEDITION    AGAINST    QUEBEC, 

WHO,   AFTER    SURMOUNTING    BY   ABILITY   AND   VALOUR 

ALL   OBSTACLES    OF    ART    AND   NATURE, 

WAS    SLAIN,    IN    THE    MOMENT    OF    VICTORY, 

ON    THE    XIII.    OF    SEPTEMBER,    MDCCLIX., 

THE    KING    AND   PARLIAMENT   OF    GREAT   BRITAIN 

DEDICATE   THIS    MONUMENT. 

Mention  has  already  been  made  of  the  cenotaph  in  Squerryes 
Park  erected  by  the  Warde  family  to  mark  the  spot  where  the  young 
warrior  received  his  first  commission.  Some  of  his  Westerham 
friends,  the  year  after  his  death,  placed  a  marble  tablet  to  his 

1  In  Lymington,  Hants,  churchyard  :  "  Sacred  to  the  memory  of  William 
Burcher,  gent,  first  cousin  to  the  late  General  Wolfe,  who  died  February  13, 
1792,  aged  79  years." 


508    LIFE  AND  LETTERS   OF   WOLFE 

memory  in  the  parish  church  where  he  was  baptized,  containing 
these  lines — 

''While  George  in  sorrow  bows  his  laurell'd  head^ 
And  bids  the  artist  grace  the  soldier  dead ; 
We  raise  no  sculptur'd  trophy  to  thy  name, 
Brave  youth  !  the  fairest  in  the  list  of  fame. 
Proud  of  thy  birth,  we  boast  th'  auspicious  year. 
Struck  with  thy  fall,  we  shed  a  general  tear ; 
With  humble  grief  inscribe  one  artless  stone. 
And  from  thy  matchless  honours  date  our  own. 
I  Decus  I  Nostrum."  ^ 

And  in  1762  Earl  Temple,  at  the  suggestion  of  his  brother-in- 
law,  Chatham,  raised  a  lofty  obelisk  at  Stowe,  inscribed — 

TO 

MAJOR-GENERAL  WOLFE, 

OSTENDUNT   TERRIS    HUNC    TANTUM    FATA. 

On  the  exact  spot  where  Wolfe  expired  a  stone  rolled  on 
the  field  before  nightfall  that  day  was  replaced  in  Sir  Guy 
Carleton's  time  by  another  in  which  a  meridional  line  was  carved. 
This  gave  way  in  1832  to  a  small  granite  shaft  upon  which  Lord 
Aylmer,  then  Governor,  caused  to  be  inscribed — 

HERE    DIED    WOLFE    VICTORIOUS. 

It  unhappily  became  defaced,  and  ninety  years  after  the  battle 
the  column  now  standing  was  raised  in  its  stead  and  enclosed  by 
an  iron  railing,  the  cost  being  borne  by  the  British  troops  then 
stationed  at  Quebec. 

But  years  before  then,  in  1827,  Canadians  of  both  French  and 
English  descent  subscribed,  at  the  instance  of  Lord  Dalhousie,  to 
a  stone  obelisk  to  the  memory  of  both  Montcalm  and  Wolfe.  It 
stands  on  the  borders  of  DufFerin  Terrace,  and  is  conspicuous 
from   the   river.      On    one    side    is    the   name   "  Montcalm,""   on 

1  Lord  Braybrooke  quotes  with  approval  these  lines  under  a  bust  of  Wolfe 
in  the  old  castle  at  Quebec — 

"Let  no  sad  tear  upon  his  tomb  be  shed, 
A  common  tribute  to  the  common  dead  : 
But  let  the  good,  the  generous  and  the  brave 
With  godlike  envy  sigh  for  such  a  grave." 

—N.  6;  Q.,  vol.  V.  p.  34. 


POETICAL  TRIBUTES  509 

the  other  "Wolfe,""  while  the  obelisk  further  bears  the  striking 
legend — 

MORTEM    .    VIRTUS    .    COMMUNEM 
FAMAM    .    HISTORIA 
MONUMENTUM    .    POSTERITAS 
DEDIT. 

The  site  of  the  battlefield  was  acquired  by  public  subscription 
in  1908  and  formally  handed  over  by  the  Prince  of  Wales  to  Earl 
Grey,  the  Governor-General,  to  be  kept  for  all  time  as  sacred 
ground. 

Although  Chatham's  funeral  oration  on  the  conqueror  of  Quebec 
was  thought  in  the  opinion  of  those  who  heard  to  fall  short  of  his 
best  efforts,  yet  in  poetry  is  Wolfe's  memory  enshrined  in  stanzas 
which  deserve  to  be  more  widely  known  than  they  are,  for  they 
have  still  power  to  fire  the  heart  and  call  aloud  to  the  spirit  of  an 
England  whose  boundaries  are  wider  than  the  brave  and  prescient 
soldier  who  helped  to  widen  them  could  ever  have  dreamed — 

"  England,  with  all  thy  faults,  I  love  thee  still ! 
Time  was  when  it  was  praise  and  hoast  enough 
In  every  clime,  and  travel  where  we  might. 
That  we  were  born  her  children.     Praise  enough 
To  fill  the  ambition  of  a  private  man. 
That  Chatham's  language  was  his  mother-tongue. 
And  Wolfe's  great  name  compatriot  with  his  own. 

For  Wolfe,  the  poet  tells  us — 

".  .  .  Wolfe,  where'er  he  fought. 
Put  so  much  of  his  heart  into  the  act, 
That  his  example  had  a  magnet's  force. 
And  all  were  swift  to  follow  whom  all  loved. 
Those  suns  are  set.     Oh,  rise  some  other  such  ! 
Or  all  that  we  have  left,  is  empty  talk 
Of  old  achievements,  and  despair  of  new."  ^ 

*  Cowper,  T?ie  Task,  Book  II.  In  one  of  his  letters  the  poet  says : 
"Nothing  could  express  my  rapture  when  Wolfe  made  the  conquest  of 
Quebec." 


APPENDIX 

The  subjoined  interesting  letter,  which  I  owe  to  the  kindnes 
of  my  friend  Mr.  Bradley,  has  recently  come  to  light :  and  confirms 
many  of  the  salient  points  in  the  published  documents,  collected 
with  so  much  patience  by  the  Canadian  historians  of  the  siege. 

"  Medway,"  off  Quebec^  September  13th,  1759. 

Dear  Sir, — By  the  "Lowestoft "  who  brings  you  the  agreeable 
news  of  our  success,  I  have  the  pleasure  of  giving  you  joy  on 
the  occasion.  Affairs  have  taken  a  most  amazing  turn  since  my 
letter  by  Captain  Perceval,  who  could  give  you  but  small  hopes 
of  what  has  happened  since,  by  our  making  a  number  of  feints. 
It  divided  the  enemies'  force  above  and  below  the  town,  that  on 
the  13th  past.  Mr.  Wolfe  determined  to  land,  made  a  feint  in 
the  night  fourteen  leagues  above  the  town  which  drew  the 
enemies'  attention  that  way,  drop'd  with  the  tide  down  the  river, 
and  landed  at  four  o'clock  in  the  morning  in  Sillery  bay,  about 
three  miles  from  the  town,  with  little  opposition,  the  light 
infantry  soon  getting  up  a  steep  bank  and  drove  what  Indians 
and  Canadians  were  there,  in  number  about  a  hundred,  off;  then 
taking  a  four  gun  battery  that  opposed  to  landing,  the  rest  of 
the  army  soon  followed. 

An  alarm  was  given  the  town,  who  sent  to  Monsieur  Mont- 
calm, the  French  General,  that  the  English  were  landed ;  he 
marched  directly  across  the  river  St.  Charles,  where  all  the 
regulars  were  encamped  (as  thinking  himself  we  should  at  last 
land  there).  At  ten  the  two  armies  were  in  sight ;  the  French 
march'd  up  to  Mr.  Wolfe  boldly,  thinking  themselves  sure  of 
the  victory.  The  French  gave  the  first  fire  at  about  a  hundred 
yards'  distance ;  our  troops  marched  on  at  about  twenty-five 
yards  gave  their  fire.  Mons.  Montcalm  detached  the  Canadians 
on  each  flank,  and  some  to  cut  off  our  people's  retreat ;  but  Mr. 
Wolfe  so  managed  that  all  his  schemes  were  defeated,  and  farely 
out-generaled  him,  which  they  all  own.  We  gave  a  few  fires, 
then  charged  with  the  bayonet,  which  broke  the  French  army. 
Then  the  Highlanders  and  Light  Infantry  went  in  sword  in 

510 


APPENDIX  511 

hand  and  entirely  routed  them,  gaining  a  compleat  victory. 
The  French  own  to  have  brought  into  the  field  10,000,  of  which 
3,000  were  regulars  according  to  their  own  account.  Our  army 
consisted  of  4,500.  To  their  eternal  honour  be  it  spoken,  our 
loss  about  600  killed  and  wounded.  The  French,  by  their 
accounts,  1,700  killed  and  wounded. 

This  stroke  has  given  them  such  an  instance  of  the  difference 
of  fighting  in  woods  and  on  the  plain,  that  they  have  never 
dared  to  look  our  troops  in  the  face  since,  though  they  are 
double  or  nearer  treble  their  numbers.  They  left  two  pieces  of 
cannon  in  the  field,  but  their  colours  got  off.  The  town  has 
not  had  a  gun  fired  at  it  since  by  our  army ;  but  they  were 
preparing  batteries,  and  on  the  approach  of  our  ships  they 
desired  a  truce  which  was  to  capitulate ;  but  their  first  terms 
were  rejected. 

The  loss  of  General  Wolfe  to  the  army  is  irreparable.  He 
had  three  balls  in  different  parts  of  the  body,  one  in  his  arm 
which  was  the  first,  one  in  the  belly,  and  one  in  the  breast.  He 
lived  just  long  enough  to  hear  he  had  gained  the  day,  on  which 
he  answered  "Thank  God,  I  die  easy."  General  Monckton 
wounded  in  the  breast,  and  Carleton  in  the  head,  but  no  danger 
is  apprehended ;  yet  the  officers  in  general  suffered  greatly. 
The  GeneraPs  corpse  comes  home  in  the  "  Royal  William.*"  On 
the  French  side,  Montcalm  killed  and  one  more  General  officer, 
with  many  other  considerable  ones.  There  are  but  few  regulars 
in  the  town,  the  rest,  with  Vaudreuil,  gone  towards  Montreal, 
where  we  hope  General  Amherst  is  near.  We  are  far  from 
any  scarcity  of  provisions  in  this  country,  having  found  great 
quantities  of  cattle  of  all  kinds  and  grain  in  abundance.  We 
have  burned  near  three  thousand  houses  here  or  more.  By  the 
accoimts  there  are  as  many  more ;  but  whether  they  share  the 
same  fate  I  cannot  tell;  but  the  rascals  deserve  it  for  their 
cruelty. 

If  Mr.  Amherst  gets  no  more  than  he  has  already,  one  year 
more  would  compleat  our  conquests  in  America,  of  which  I  hope 
not  a  foot  will  be  returned  to  the  French  Government.  If  I 
was  to  make  a  peace  my  way,  it  would  soon  be  settled.  They 
might  keep  what  they  have  and  we  do  the  same ;  and  so  rest  till 
we  quarrelled  again. 

The  limit  of  paper  obliges  me  to  bid  you  adieu. 

I  am,  Sir,  your  dutifal  Son, 

Charles  Leslie. 


INDEX 


Abercrombie,  General,  347,  365,  367, 
381,  385,  390,  391,  392,  393,  391,  395, 
402,  405,  417,  418 

Aberdeen,  58,  60 

Abraham,  Plains  of,  489-94,  497 

Abthorpe,  Dr.  Stephen,  123  note  1 

Abthorpe,  Mrs.  Frances,  204,  205,  274, 
275  and  note  1 

Adeane,  Lieut.  -General  James,  284-5, 
286,  288  and  note  1,  301 

Aix,  Isle  of,  329,  330,  391 

Aix-la- Chapel le,   congress  of,  78,  80,  81 

Albemarle,  (second)  Earl  of,  18  note  1, 
67,  62,  185,  187,  188,  189,  191,  193, 
194,  199,  203,  204,  246 

Albemarle,  (third)  Earl  of,  see  Bury 

Aldercron,  General,  175  and  note  1 

Allanton,  Sir  Henry  Stuart,  66 

Allen,  Ethan,  359 

Ambrose,  Wolfe's  servant,  343,  484 

America,  Wolfe's  views  as  to  the  future 
of,  395 

American  colonists,  134,  376,  394,  395 

Amherst,  Jeffrey,  Lord,  34,  121,  125, 
287  and  note  1,  347,  356,  358,  362, 
363,  367,  370,  371,  373,  376,  378,  379, 
380,  381,  385,  387,  388,  391,  393,  396, 
400,  401,  405,  411,  412,  421,  422,  423, 
425,  429,  431,  432,  433,  463,  464,  469, 
470,  475,  481,  511 

Amherst,  General  William,  386 

Anse  du  Foulon,  476,  477,  478,  479,  485, 
486,  488 

Anson,  Lord,  11,  268,  320,  421 

Antwerp,  44,  75 

Appleby,  Mrs.,  1 

Aremberg,  Due  d',  28,  29,  35 

Army,  British  (for  particular  officers  and 
regiments  see  their  titles). — Bayonet 
exercise,  61  ;  church  attendance, 
97-8 ;  commissariat,  367-8,  424  ; 
deserters,  233-4,  265  ;  drill  methods, 
357,  368,  431  ;  equipment  and  cloth- 
ing, 99,  221,  280,  302,  369  ;  foreign 
battalions,  287,  292,  302,  312  ;  garrison 
life  in  Portsmouth,  357  ;  increased 
strength  in  1756,  301  ;  intelligence 
department,  29  note  1  ;  marksmanship, 
254-5  ;  oflBcers'  expenses,  90,  91,  302, 
350,  393  ;  officers'  lack  of  training, 
207,  274  and  note  2  ;  general  orders 
issued  prior  to  Dettingen,  32  ;  at  Que- 

L  L  613 


bee,  446,  459,  497  ;  regiments  at  Que- 
bec, 490 ;  transport  regulations,  18 
note  2 

Arthur,  Mayor  of  Exeter,  240,  244 

Artillery,  125 

Aschaffenburg,  30 

Aylva,  Baron  d',  81 

Balfour,  Captain,  382 

Banff,  138  and  note  1 

Bank  of  England,  54 

Barbour,  Mr.,  166-7 

Barcelona,  17 

Barre,  Colonel  Isaac,  358,  359,  430,  433, 

460,  471  note  2,  472,  483  note  2,  486, 

496  note,  498 
Barren's  Eegiment,  65 
Barrington,   Lord,  334,   335,   411,   433, 

506  and  Twte  1 
Basingstoke,  238 
Bastide,  369 
Bath,  10,  238,  272,  405  and  note  3,  406, 

407,  501 
Bath,  Lady,  350 
Bathiany,  Marshal,  79 
Bathurst,  Lord,  484  note  1 
Battery  Island,  373  note 
Beauclerk,  Lord  George,  270  and  note  2, 

349 
Beaufort,  Duke  of,  306  and  note  1 
Beaumont,  441 
Beauport,  428,  438,  445,  446,  454,  473, 

482,  489 
Beckford,  Alderman,  501 
Beckwith,     Lieut. -Colonel,     319,     358, 

399 
Beckwith,  Mrs.,  288 
Bedford,  Duke  of,  71,  301,  314,  315,  316, 

318,  321,  323,  351,  352,  417 
Belfast,  182 
Bell,   Captain  Thomas,    383,  431,  483, 

502,  503,  504 
Belleisle,  Due  de,  24,  28,  299,  444 
Berkeley,  Bishop,  201-2 
Bertie,  Lord  Roljert,  308 
Berwick,  213,  256 
Bic,  Isle  of,  408,  423,  434 
Bigot,  Fran9ois,  444  and  notes  1  and  2, 

478 
Billings,  Major,  230,  256 
Biscay,  Bay  of,  326,  329,  391 
Blackheath,  10,  144,  501,  502 


514 


INDEX 


Blakeney,  General,  55,  293,  300, 311  and 

note  1,  890 
Blakeney,  Major,  82 
Bland,  General,  52,  63,   113,   254  and 

note  1 
Bland's  Dragoons  (now  13th  Hussars), 

34-6 
Blandford,  Marquis  of,  281,  301,   803, 

319,  417 
Blaquiere,  284 
Bois-le-Duc,  79,  80 
Boisragon,  Captain,  261 
Bonn,  26-7 

Boscawen,  Admiral,  122,  238,  270,  847, 
356,  358,  361,  362,  363,  365,  370,  873, 
379,  380,  381,  388,  393,  397,  400,  412, 
421,  422,  429 
Boscawen,  Hon.  John,  288 
Boston,  391,  394 
Bos  well,  James,  180 
BougainviUe,  435,  437,  444,  465,   471, 

481,  482,  490,  491,  495,  496 
Braddock,    General,  239,  260,  267,  274 

and  note  1 
Bradley,  Mr.  A.  G.,  64,  386 
Bradstreet,  369,  403 
Bragg,  Brigadier-General,  18  note  1 
Braybrooke,  Lord,  508  note 
Brack,  Alan,  179 
Breda,  71 

Breslau,  capture  of,  347  and  note  1 
Brett,  Charles,  132  note  1, 137,  154,  159, 
160  Tiote  1,  162  and  note  1,  163,  169, 
170-1,  224 
Brett,  Captain  John,  162  note  1 
Brett,  Miss  Nanny,  171,  229,  853 
Brett,  Admiral  Sir  Piercy,  229,  232 
Brett,  Timothy,  162  note  1,  240,  279,  302 
Bright,  Mrs.,  43 

Brodrick,  Rear-Admiral,  322,  332,  342 
Broglie,  General  de,  24,  28,  29 
Brown,  Ensign,  288,  289 
Brown  (Ensign  of  20th  Regiment),  302 

and  note  1 
Brown,  Lieutenant,  494 
Brown,  Marshal,  305  note  1 
Browne,  Lady,  191-2 
Brudenell,  Lord,  189 
Bruges,  19 

Buckinghamshire,  Countess  of,  9 
Burcher,  Mrs.  Anne,  268,  272,  273 
Burcher,  James,  272 
Burcher,  William,  272  note  2, 507  and  note 
Burke,  Edmund,  3,  499-500 
Burton,  Colonel,  438,  462,  471  note  1, 

477,  489,  490,  494 
Bury,  Lord  (afterwards  third  Earl  of 
Albemarle),  57,  67  and  note  1,  110, 
112,  116,  117,  118, 122,  124,  125, 128, 
129,  131,  135, 136,  137,  157, 161,  163, 
173,  174,  175-6,  177,  179,  185,  189, 
204,  206,  207,  212,  217,  222,  224,  228, 


233,  236,  287,  240,  242,  243,  246,  248, 

259,  261,  268,  281,  282,  284,  285,  289, 

301,313,314,316,  317 
Bute,  Lord,  472 
Butterlin,  Count,  401 
Buxton,  267,  272 
Byng,  Admiral,  271,  291,  292,  298,  294, 

300,  305,  306,  308 

Cade,  Mrs.,  28,  133 

Calcraft,  John,  270  and  note  1,  822 

Calcutta,  357 

Caldwell,    Captain,  407  and  note,   408, 

481,  448,  483 
Calendar  reform,  185  and  note  1 
Cameron  clan,  63,  66 
Cameron,  Ensign,  466 
Camlachie,  91 

Campbell,  Colin,  murder  of,  179-80 
Campbell,  Sir  James,  401-2 
Canada,  French  policy  regarding,  846 : 
French    regime    in,    416,    444,    478  ; 
martial  population,  424  ;  Wolfe's  pro- 
clamation to  inhabitants,  439-40 
Canterbury,  186,  290 
Cap  Rouge,  455,  472,  490,  496 
Cape  Breton,   82,  270  and  note  8,  868, 

385 
Capelrig,  212-8 

Garden,  Lieutenant,  359-60,  869 
Cardigan,  Lord,  189 
Carillon,  469 

Carleton,  Guy  (afterwards  Lord  Dorches- 
ter), 72,  196,  197,  198,  199,  228,  302, 
853,  354,  356,  359,  369.  389,  892,  410- 
411,  423,  424,  425,  427,  430,  435,  451, 
456,  471,  475,  476,  477,  478,  482,  483, 
496  note,  507,  511 
Carleton,  "rhomas,  450  and  note 
Carlisle,  53,  54,  220-1,  256 
Carlyle,  Thomas,  487  note 
Carteret,  Lord,  80 
Carthagena,  12,  14,  17,  250,  832 
Cathcart,  Lord,  12,  14,  218,  220,  833 
Chaban,  Major,  68 
Chads,  Captain,  462,  480,  485 
Champlain,  Lake,  429,  444 
Chandemagore,  356 
Charleroi,  24 

Charles  VII,  Emperor,  17,  35 
Charles  Edward  Stuart,  Prince,  61,  52, 
68,  54,  55,  56,  68,  60,  61,  62,  67,  198, 
198 
Charles  of  Lorraine,  Prince,  28,  40 
Chartres,  Due  de,  45 
Chatelaillon,  331,  841 
Chatterton,  10 
Cheshire,  Lieutenant,  368-9 
Chrysal,  Charles  Johnstone's,  418-9 
Churchill,  General  George,  101,  218 
Clarke,  Colonel,  320,  843  endnote  1,  869, 


390 


INDEX 


515 


Clayton,  General,  34,  37 

Clements,  Ben,  230 

Cole,  William,  123  7iotc  1 

Collingwood,  Lieutenant-Governor,  179 

Collins,  Captain,  395 

Conollv,  Thomas,  228 

Conolly,  William,  228,  231 

Conway,  Marshal,  105  a,m\  notCy  322,  329, 
330,  332,  333,  337,  341 

Cook,  Captain,  461  and  note 

Cope,  General,  18  rwte  1,  31,  51,  52 

Cork,  183 

Cornwallis,  Brigadier-General  F.dward, 
18  note  1,  88,  90,  94,  95, 101, 134,  135, 
138,  139,  140,  308,  309,  322,  333,  337, 
341,  346 

Cornwallis,  Lord,  295 

Cotton,  deserter,  465 

Coudres,  He  aux,  424,  425 

Courtrai,  44 

Cowper,  William,  verses  on  Wolfe, 
509 

Crawford's  Regiment,  75 

Cringletie,  Lord,  171  note  1 

Crofton,  478 

Croom's  Hill,  Wolfe's  house  on,  184 

Crown  Point,  346,  422,  463,  469 

Croydon,  112 

Cuba,  21 

Culloden,  battle  of,  60-66  ;  Wolfe's  criti- 
cism on,  156-7 

Culloden  House,  67 

Cumberland,  William,  Duke  of,  30,  31, 
35,  37-8,  39,  41,  49,  50,^51,  54,  55,  57, 
58,  59,  60,  61,  65.  66,  69,  70,  72,  75, 
77,  78,  79,  80,  81,  84,  95,  108,  117, 
120,  125,  135,  136,  144,  147-8,  169, 
185,  199,  203,  204,  206,  223,  224,  240, 
256,  262,  264,  268,  281,  283,  284,  312, 
317,  318  and  note  1,  325,  326,  340, 
413,  417 

Dalhousie,  Lord,  508 

Dalling,  Major,  431,  452 

DaUow,  Captain,  50 

Dalton,  Mr.  Charles,  268,  297  note  1 

Dalwhinnie,  52 

Dauphin,  French,  187 

Dawnay,Mr.,  199 

Dechambault,  463,  469 

Delabene,  Major,  62 

Delaune,  Captain,  360,  369,   389,    476, 

483,  487,  488 
Dentistry,  eighteenth-century,  178,  190 
Deptford,  18 
Derby,  54 
Desclouseaux,  256 
Des  Gouttes,  Admiral,  377,  381 
Dettingen,  battle  of,  33-40 
Devizes,  293 
Donnellan,  Major  Nehemiah,  113,  131, 

144,  147,  219,  241,  279,  283,  290 
LL  2 


Dorset,  Duchess  of,  104 

Dover,  186,  226,  227,  228,  229 

Dover  Castle,  225,  226,  227 

Doway,  Baillie,  69 

Draper,  Sir  William,  358 

Drogheda,  183 

Drucour,  Chevalier  de,  377,  381,  382 

Dublin,  182,  183 

Dundee,  133 

Dundonald,  Lord,  380,  388 

Dunk,  Captain,  455 

Dunkirk,  232,  282 

Duquesne,  Marquis,  260 

Durell,  Rear- Admiral,  407,  421,  422,  423, 

424,  425,  428,  431,  432,  434,  435 
Duroure,  Colonel,  16,  31,  33,  35,  41 

Earthquake  in  London,  418 

East  India  Company,  19 

Edinburgh,  51,  52,  55,  57,  98,  136 

EflBngham,  Lady,  9 

Effingham,  Lord,  18  7iote  1,  308 

Egerton,  Mrs.,  231 

Ekins,  Captain,  50 

Elegy,  Gray's,  486-7  and  note 

Elgin,  60 

Elliott,  Colonel  (Lord  Heathfield),  409 

Ellis,  Wellbore,  506 

Engel,  Ensign,  466 

Erie,  Lake,  260 

Estcourt,  Lord,  137  note  1 

Etchimin,  River,  476 

Eugene,  Prince,  8 

Evelyn,  John,  5 

Exeter,  239,  240 

Fairfax,  Ensign  William  Henry,  437 

Falkirk,  battle  of,  55-7,  67 

Falkland,  199 

Ferrers,  Lady,  414  and  note 

Field,  Captain,  49 

Fielding,  Henry,  54 

Finchley,  54 

Fisher,  Thomas,  army  agent,  90,  91  and 

note  1,  195,  337,  350,  353,  384,  393, 

427,  506 
Fitzmaurice,     Lord,     afterwards     Lord 

Lansdowne,  195,  353,  483  jwte  2 
Flanders,  18,  19,  28 
Fleury,  Cardinal,  17,  28 
Fontenoy,  battle  of,  49-50,  51 
Forbes,  Brigadier,  347 
Forbes,  Lord,  65 
Forbes,  Sir  Arthur,  59 
Forbes,  Mrs.,  173,  255,  271 
Forfar,  67 
Forres,  60 
Fort  Augustus,   57,   58,   67,  177,  180, 

253,  255 
Fort  Duquesne,  346 
Fort  George,  156,  253 
Fort  Inversnaid,  69 


516 


INDEX 


Fort  St.    Philip's,   292,  300,  305,  311, 

390,  391 
Fort  William,  165,  173 
Fort- William  Henry,  443 
Fouras,  331,  332,  341,  342 
Fourth  Foot  (Barrell's),  Wolfe  appointed 

to,  44,  49,  51,  62  ;  at  Falkirk,  66,  60  ; 

at  Culloden,  61,  62,  63,  65,  69 
Fowke,  General,  78,  259,  308 
Frampton,  Brigadier,  18  notes  1  and  2 
Fran9ois,  Wolfe's  servant,  336,  348,  483, 

484 
Frankfort-on-the-Main,  27-8 
Fraser,  Colonel,  471  note  1 
Fraser,  Simon,  488 

Frederick,  Prince  of  Wales,  143  note  1 
Frederick  the  Great,  17,  294,  305,  319, 

320  and  note  1,  325,  333,  357  ;  Wolfe 

anxious  to  serve  under,  403-4 
Freefolk,  237,  277 
French  court  at  Versailles,  197 
French  society,  Wolfe's  impressions  of, 

186,  190,  191,  194,  205-6 
Frontenac,  397 
Fundy,  Bay  of,  394 

Gabarus,  Bay  of,  366,  370,  383,  390 
Gage,  Lord,  203  and  note  1,  346 
Gaspe,  Bay  of,  397 
Gaucher,  Mademoiselle,  188 
George  II,  10,  11,  16,  17,  30,  31,  34,  35, 
37,  38,  39,  41,  48,  51,  54,  107,  308, 

311,  318,  333,  344,  410-11  ;  his 
retort  when  told  that  Wolfe  was  mad, 
417 

George  III,  345 

Ghent,  19  and  note  2,  20,  47,  48,  49,  51 

Gibbon,  293  Twte  1 

Gibraltar,  292,  293,  294,  300,  308 

Glamorganshire,  original  home  of  Wolfe 

family,  2 
Glasgow,  Wolfe's  impressions  of,  94,  97, 

99 
Glasgow  University,  89 
Glen  Esk,  58 
Glenorchy,  Lord,  130 
Goat  Island,  373  and  note,  379 
Gobelins  factory,  195-6 
Goldsmith,   Captain  Edward,   22,    113, 

231,   281,    309,    311,   483,    506    and 

note  2 
Goldsmith,  Mrs.,  310,  311 
Goldsmith,  Oliver,  22  and  nA)t6  2,   113, 

312,  506  Tiote  2 
Goodwood,  303 
Gordon,  Mrs.,  58-60 
Goreham,  Captain,  374,  375,  477 
Grammont,  Due  de,  34 

Grant,  Major,  343 

Grant,  Mrs.,  271 

Greenwich,  10,  11,  110,  153,  154,  502 

Greenwich  Park,  123 


GrenviUe,  416,  416 

Grey,  Major,  60 

Grey,  Lord,  of  Ho  wick,  293 

Grey,  Lady,  of  Howick,  186,   243,  245, 

293,  294 
Guiguer,  Mr.,  263,  264,  267 
Guildford,  236,  237 
Guillem,  Captain,  431 
Guise,  General,  212  and  note  1 

Hales,  Lieutenant- Colonel,  376 
Halifax,  Nova  Scotia,  142,  363,  366,  367, 

396,  422,  423,  426 
Hamilton,  Lord  Archibald,  192  and  note 

1,  193 
Hamilton,  Charles  (Captain),  67 
Hamilton,  Duke  of,  213 
Hamilton,        Duchess      of      (Elizabeth 

Gunning),  213  and  note  1 
Hamilton,  Miss,  218 
Hamilton,  Sir  William,  192,  193 
Hanau,  29,  32,  39 
Hanley,  Governor,  268 
Hanover,  10,  17,  325 
Hanoverian  troops,  24,  27,  28,  31,  48 
Harcourt,  Due  d  ,  44 
Harcourt,  Lord,  195  and  n/}te  1,  196 
Hardy,  Sir  Charles,  365,  366,  376,  389, 

396 
Haren,  Madame,  187,  208 
Haren,  Miss,  200 
Harte,  Canon,  188 
Hastenbeck,  battle  of,  325 
Hawke,  Admiral  Sir  Edward,  271,  294, 

300,    322,    326,    331,   382,    333,   344, 

421 
Hawlev,  General  Henry,   8  note   1,  55, 

66,   57,  68,   59,   60,  63,  66,  67,    68, 

280 
Hayter,  Bishop,  195  and  note  1 
Heightley,  Colonel,  60 
Hellinback,  29  nx)te  1 
Henderson,    volunteer    in    Quebec    ex- 
pedition, 494 
Hennis,  Lieutenant,  241,  245 
Herbert,  383,  396 
Highland    troops,    141,    146  ;    Wolfe's 

good  opinion  of,  363,  372 
Higsham,  Mrs.,  84 
Hill,  Captain,  50 
Hindes,  Captain,  126 
Hochst,  27,  29 
Holderness,  Lord,  472 
Holmes,  Rear-Admiral,   421,    463,  468, 

469,  476,  477,  478,  480,  482,  485,  489 
Honey  wood.  General,  18  rwte  1 
Honeywood,  Philip  (Colonel),  259,  260, 

261,  263,  266,  268 
Hooker,  Betty,  8,  160 
Hooker,  Mrs.,  109 

Hooper,  Rear-Admiral,  305  and  note  1 
Hooper,  William,  305  and  Twte  1 


INDEX 


517 


Hopson,  General,  364,  365  and  rwte 

Horse-racing,  238 

Hoskins,  Miss,  93,  111,  112,  137 

Hoskins,  Mrs.,  110 

Howard,  Sir  Charles,  239 

Howe,  Lord,   304,   329,   330,   333,   340, 

346,  365,  367,  369  ;  death  of,  384  and 

note  ;  390,  392,  403 
Howe,   Lieutenant-Colonel  Sir  William 

(afterwards  Lord),  404  and  riote,  425, 

431,  434,  483,  490,  491 
Huske,  General,  18  iwte  1,  31,  32,   55, 

62,  98,  99 
Hutchinson,  Governor  of  Miissachusetts, 

433 

Indians,  American,  369,  385  ;  massacre 
of  British  garrison,  443  and  note  2 

Innes,  Major,  169 

Invasion  of  England,  precautions  against, 
277,  278,  279,  281,  291,  316 

Inverdouglas,  214,  215 

Inverness,  52,  58,  61,  154,  158,  174 

Inwood,  Mrs.,  97,  166 

Ireland,  Wolfe's  impressions  of,  94,  177, 
183 

Ireton,  Henry,  3 

Irish  Brigade,  75 

Irishwomen,  Wolfe's  impressions  of,  183 

Irving,  Major,  471  note  1 

Isembourg,  Count  d',  302,  303 

James  I,  2 

Jersey,  Earl  of,  1 

Jervis,     John     (afterwards     Lord     St. 

Vincent),  15,  482,  483 
Johannes,  Town  Major  of  Quebec,  452 
Johnson,  Samuel,  124,  154,  155,  180 
Johnson,  Sir  William,  421 
Johnstone,  Chevalier,  489 

Kane,  General,  166 

Kendal,  Mrs.,  160 

Kennington  Cove,  372 

Kent,  privileges  of  freeholders  in,  281 

Kerr,  Lord  Mark,  62 

Kerr,  Lord  Robert,  64 

KhevenhuUer,  Count,  38 

Killick,  pilot  on  St.  Lawrence,  436 

Kilmarnock,  Countess  of,  55 

Kilmarnock,  Earl  of,  63 

Kingsley,  Lieut. -General  William,  293, 

299,  301 
Klosterzeven,  Convention  of,  326 
Knowles,  Vice-Admiral,   322,  329,   342, 

390 
Knox,  Captain  John,  431 
Konigsegg,  Marshal,  49 

La  Balleine,  366 

Lacey,  Count,  73,  185,  343 

Lacey,  General,  73 


Lacey,  Miss,  72-75,  77 
La  Coromandiere,  372 
Lafausille,  General,   58,  126,   127,  155, 
166,  192,    281,    282,  300   and  note  1, 
304,  338 
Lafausille,  Mrs.,  155,  241 
Laffeldt,  battle  of,  75-77 
Laforey,  Captain,  382 
Laggan,  Achadrom,  254 
Lally,  Comte  de,  356 
Lancashire  Fusiliers,  87 
Lancashire,  Wolfe's  impressions  of,  222 
Lang,  Mr.  Andrew,  179 
Lauder,  Ensign,  288,  289 
Lavington,  Bishop,  240,  244 
Lawrence,  Brigadier,  142,  347,  363,  370, 

372,  373,  374,  391,  394,  430 
Lawrence,  schoolmaster  at  Westerham,  6 
Lawson,  Elizabeth,  78,  87,  93,  103,  110, 

111,  113,  137,  141 
Lawson,  Lady,  159 
Lawson,  Sir  Wilfrid,  78 
Lee,  Mrs.,  73 
Leslie,  Captain,  407  and  Twte,  431,  462, 

483  ;  letter  describing  battle  of  Quebec, 

510-11 
Lessines,  51 

Leuthen,  battle  of,  347  nx)te  1 
Levis,  Due  de,  465,  477,  481 
Lewis,  Mrs.  Mary,  1  nx>te  6 
Lighthouse  Point,  373,  378 
Ligonier,  Lord,  18  note  1,  56,  76-7,  121, 

320,  329,  337  and  note  1,  338,  392,  399, 

400,  403,  404,  410,  413,  424,  430 
Limbourg,  79 
Limerick,  2,  3,  182 
Linlithgow,  56 
Lisbon,  283  and  note  1 
Livingstone,  Adam,  360 
Loch  Lomond,  214 
Loftns,    Captain  Arthur,  50,  108,  113, 

144,    157,    166,  171,    181,    182,    195, 

218 
Long  Point,  359 
Lonsdale,  Lord,  348        ' 
Lord,  Hugh,  297 
L'Orembeck,  366,  373,  374,  377 
Lotteries,  State,  159,  162,  167,  316 
Loudoun,  Lord,  58,  346,  369,  417 
Louis  XV,  185,  199 
Louisbourg,  Wolfe  proposes  demolition 

of,    355  ;    forces    dispatched  against, 

370  ;  description  and  plan  of,  370-1  ; 

siege  of,  372-81,  383-5,  387-9,  402-3; 

capitulation,       382  ;       French       and 

British  losses,    386 ;   mentioned,    81, 

82,  238,  346,  347,  364,  365,  366,  368, 

390,  422,  423,  431,  432,  433 
Lowendahl,  Marshal,  79 
Lowositz,  battle  of,  305  note  1 
Lowther,  Sir  James,  406 
Lowther,  Katherine  (afterwards  Duchess 


518 


INDEX 


of  Bolton),  237,  348,  350,  406,  417, 

483,  502,  503,  504  and  mte 
Lucas's  Coffee  House,  Dublin,  184 
Lynch,  Mr.,  417 
Lyndhurst,  272 
Lyttelton,  Sir  Richard,  413,  499 

Macclesfield,  54 

Macdonald,  Captain,  488 

Macdonald  clan,  61 

MacDowell,  Captain  Alexander,  405 

Mackellar,  Major,  369,  431,  437 

Macleod,  Laird  of,  179 

MTherson,  Evan,  254  and  note  1 

Maestricht,  72,  75,  77,  79,  81 

Maillebois,  General,  24 

Maitland,  Captain,  431 

Manchester,  54 

Maria  Theresa,  17,  19,  70 

Marines,  Wolfe  appointed  to,  15-16  ;  4, 
258-9 

Marlborough,  Duchess  of,  48 

Marlborough,  (first)  Duke  of,  4,  8,  283 

Marlborough,  (second)  Duke  of,  281  and 
note  1,  341 

Martin,  Captain,  412-3 

Martin,  Colonel,  63 

Mason,  Sir  Christopher,  325,  328,  383, 
398 

Massachusetts  militia,  433  ;  colony  of, 
501 

Maxwell,  Lietenant-Colonel  Hamilton, 
245,  275,  286,  358,  399 

Meaburn  Hall,  502  note 

Meech,  Lieutenant,  437 

Melle,  274 

Menin,  44 

Merrydan,  Captain,  21,  23,  38 

Messervey,  Colonel,  380 

Metz,  127,  129,  135 

Milbourne,  Captain,  98 

Minden,  battle  of,  104,  355 

Minorca,  291,  292,  293,  294,  391 

Mir^,  366,  370 

Molesworth,  Lord,  166 

Moltke,  General,  51 

Monckton,  Brigadier,  34,  366,  495,  497, 
498,  511 

Monro,  Colonel,  369 

Mons,  24 

Montagu,  Duke  of,  110 

Montcalm,  Marquis  de,  birth  and  train- 
ing, 443  note  1  ;  captures  Fort  William 
Henry,  340  and  n^te  1,  346,  443  ;  other 
successes  against  British  troops,  443, 
444  ;  Wolfe's  opinion  of,  379,  403  ; 
captures  dispatch  revealing  plan  of 
attack  on  Quebec,  434-5  ;  breach  with 
Civil  Governor  of  Quebec,  444-5 ; 
communications  with  Wolfe,  450,  452, 
453  ;  at  battle  of  Quebec,  489,  491, 
493 ;    wounded,    495 ;    death,    496  ; 


mentioned,  387,  396,  402,  417,  438, 
448,  454,  455,  459,  463,  467,  468,  469, 
471,  472,  475,  476,  477 

Montmorenci,  438  ;  British  reverse  at, 
453-463  ;  467,  468 

Montreal,  359,  421,  427,  446,  450,  473 

Montresor,  369 

Mordaunt,  Sir  John,  78,  107,  131,  169, 
198,  237,  247,  256,  262,  265,  267, 
277,  278,  279,  283,  304,  311,  322,  326, 
329,  330,  331,  332,  333,  341,  343,  344, 
417 

Morris,  Colonel,  375,  376 

Morris,  Mrs. ,  192 

Mostyn,  Admiral,  256 

Muffs,  coachmen's,  194 

Murray,  Lieutenant-Colonel  Alexander, 
412  and  note,  431 

Murray,  Brigadier  James,  388,  413,  425, 
434,  447,  456,  457,  458,  463,  464,  468, 
469,  472,  480,  484,  490,  497,  498,  499 

Nairn,  60,  64 

Napier,  Lord,  120,  322 

Nassau,  Prince  of,  302,  303 

Nelson,  points  of  resemblance  to  Wolfe, 

415  and  n/)te,  482  ;  498 
Newcastle,  452,  453,  454 
Newcastle,  Duke  of,  54,   80,   319,  326, 

411,  417,  505 
Newmarsh,  Captain,  180 
Newport,  Isle  of  Wight,  13,  323 
New  York,  391,  396 
Niagara,  463,  469 
Noailles,  Due  de,  28,  29,  32,  33,  34,  35, 

39,40 
Norcliffe,  Reverend  C.  B.,  64  note 
Nova  Scotia,  133,    137,  138,  140,  155, 

424 

Old  Burlington  Street,  23  note  1,  70  and 

note  1,  77 
Oleron,  Isle  of,  328  and  ndte  1,  329,  330 
Ontario,  Lake,  421 
Orange,  Prince  of,  79,  159  and  note  1 
Orleans,  Duke  of,  187 
Orleans,  Isle  of,  408,  435,  436,  437,  440, 

447,  454,  474 
Ormond,  Duke  of,  3 
Ostend,  18,  19,  42,  43 
Osterhout,  78 
Oswego,  367,  443 
Oughton,  Colonel,  483 

Page,  Sir  Gregory,  338,  392  n^te,  393 

Page,  Mrs.  Judith,  392 

Palliser,  83 

Paris,  178,  186 

Parr,  Captain  Henry,  344 

Parry,  Joshua,  484  note  1 

Partridge,  Lieutenant,  112 

Patersou,  Miss,  43 


INDEX 


519 


Pelham,  Henry,  70,  141 

Perth,  52,  58,  110,  129,  155,  181 

Peterborough,  Lord,  78,  322 

Philpot,  Mr.,  299 

Pitt,  H.,  136 

Pitt,  William,  afterwards  Lord  Chatham, 
10,  48,  295,  313,  318,  319,  320,  321, 
322,  326,  333,  334,  344,  346,  363,  398, 
400,  401,  403,  406,  410,  413,  415,  416, 
417,  422,  472,  499,  504,  505,  508,  509 

Point  L6vis,  441,  445,  450,  451,  454,  473, 
477,  481,  482 

Point  des  P^res,  445 

Pointe  aux  Trembles,  451,  456,  472,  478 

Pompadour,  Madame  de,  185, 188, 196-7, 
199 

Ponsonby,  Brigadier,  18  note  1 

Port  L'Orient,  274 

Port  Mahon,  308 

Portsmouth,  5,  14,  268,  357,  398,  502 

Porto  Bello,  11 

Post-chaises,  Wolfe's  dislike  of,  210 

Pragmatic  Sanction,  17 

Prague,  24,  28 

Preston,  54 

Preston  Pans,  battle  of,  52,  57 

Prevost,  Major,  471  Tiote  1 

Prideaux,  Brigadier,  421,  431 

Prince  Edward's  Island,  382,  and  see 
Royale 

Provost,  Brigadier,  391,  393 

Pulteney,  Brigadier,  18  Twte  1 

Pulteney's  Regiment,  75 

Quebec,  Wolfe's  arrival  at,  437  ;  prepara- 
tions for  defence,  438  ;  French  employ 
fireships,  440-1,  452-3 ;  British  en- 
trenchments, 441-2  ;  dissensions  be- 
tween Montcalm  and  Vaudreuil,  444-5 ; 
opening  of  bombardment,  447;  damage 
to  buildings,  450,  464  ;  shortage  of 
provisions,  452,  464  ;  British  repulsed 
at  Montmorenei,  453-63 ;  battle  on 
Plains  of  Abraham,  488-96  ;  capitula- 
tion, 496  ;  casualties,  496  Tiote 

Quebec  House  (Spiers),  Westerham,  1,  5 

Raess,  Captain,  364 

Rainsford,  Major,  30,  35,  38,  40,  42,  45, 
50 

Ram6say,  French  commander,  496 
Ranger's  Lodge,  Greenmch,  153 
Remedies,   eighteenth-century,   7,    123, 

124,  126,  150,  151,  311-12 
Rh6,  Isle  of,  328  and  note,  329,  330,  342 
Rich,  Colonel,  63-4,  107,  124,  157,  343 
Richelieu,  Due  de,  294-5,  300,  320 
Richmond,  Duke  of,  193  and  Twte  1, 197, 

198,   199,  200,  331,  281  and  Twte  1, 

302,  303,  417 
Rickson,  Lieutenant-Colonel,  50,  86,  92, 

133-5,  138,  165,  169,  192,  245,  252, 


269,  297  and  note  1,  299,  321,  339, 
348-9,  358,  402  and  note  2 

Rigby,  Richard,  314,  335 

Riots  in  Gloucestershire,  303-6 

Riverhead,  287  note  1 

Road-making  in  Scotland,  215 

Robison,  Prof.  John,  487  note 

Rochefort  expedition,  320,  328-33,  834  ; 
Wolfe's  criticism  of,  335-7,  339-40  ; 
Board  of  Inquiry  into,  341-2  ;  men- 
tioned, 391,  421 

Rochelle,  328,  330,  331,  332,  342,  391 

Rodney,  Lord,  393 

Rogers,  369 

Roland,  Wolfe's  servant,  77,  114-5,  116, 
154 

Rollo,  Colonel,  375,  376 

Romer,  Lieutenant,  43  and  note  1 

Rosbach,  battle  of,  343  note  1 

Ross,  Major,  376 

Rothes,  Lord,  18  note  1,  42 

Rougemont  Castle,  246 

Roy,  General,  215 

Royale,  He,  364,  389 

Russell,  Mr.,  425 

Ryder,  Surgeon,  43 

Sackville,  Lady  George,  389 

Sackville,  Lord  George,  95,  98,  101, 
103-4,  105,  106,  117,  120,  163,  170, 
173,  323,  341,  342  note  3,  355,  359, 
363,  366,  392  and  note,  400,  404  and 
note,  417 

St.  Charles,  428,  438,  495 

St.  Cloud,  187 

St.  Joseph,  435 

St.  Laurent,  435,  437,  438,  439,  441 

St.  Lawrence,  Gulf  of,  394 

St.  Lawrence,  River,  400,  407,  422,  426, 
428,  429,  435-6 

St.  Martin's,  391 

St.  Michael's,  455 

St.  Ours,  General  de,  493 

St.  Tron,  25 

Salisbury,  399 

Sandwich,  Lord,  80 

Saunders,  Admiral  Sir  Charles,  414,  420, 
421,  422,  425,  426,  428,  431,  435,  438, 
440,  441,  445,  453,  460,  463,  464,  482, 
483,  485,  497-8,  501 

Sawyer,  Madam,  72 

Saxe,  Marshal,  49,  51,  75,  77,  78,  79 

Scanderbeg,  296  and  note  1 

Scotland,  conditions  after  rising  of  1745, 
87-8 

Scots  Greys,  76 

Scott,  Miss,  186,  503 

Scott,  Mrs.,  121,  124-5,  343  and  note  1 

Scott,  Major,  364,  372,  431 

Scott,  Sir  Walter,  179,  487  note 

Seabourg,  Mrs.,  43 

Selwin,  banker  in  Paris,  187 


520 


INDEX 


Selwyn,  George,  471 

Semple,  Lord,  62 

Senerzegues,  General  de,  493 

Seymour,  Sir  Henry,  2  note  2 

Shelburne,  Lord,  417 

Shooters'  Hill,  123,  289 

Short,  wine-merchaut,  312 

Shroton,  300 

Silesia,  294 

Sillery,  476 

Simpson,  Mrs.  Catherine,  179  and  note  1 

Sittingbourne,  236 

Sixty-seventh     Regiment,     Wolfe     ap- 
pointed to,  337  ;  398,  401,  405 
Skinner,  Robert,  156 
Smith,  Admiral,  283 
Smith,  Sir  Hervey,  388,  431,  452,  462, 

464,  483,  502 
Somerset,  Sergeant,  45 
Sotheron,    William,  56-7,    90,  137  and 

note  1 
Southey,  Robert,  487  note 
Speke,  Captain,  357 
Spey,  River,  60 
Spittal,  Captain,  431 
Squerryes  Court,  1,  9,  15,  237,  292,  504 

note,  507 
Squire,  Bishop,  160  and  note  1 
Stade,  325 
Stair,  Lord,  18,  20,  24,  25,  2a,  29  and 

note  1,  30,  31,  32,  33,  39,  40,  41 
Stanhope,  Captain,  22 
Stanhope,  Lord,  415 
Stanhope,  Philip,  188,  189,  220 
Stanwix,  Colonel,  221 
Stapylton,  Brigadier,  63 
Stephens,  surgeon,  43 
Stevenson,  Robert  Louis,  179 
Stirling,  55,  58,  88,  89 
Stoekstadt,  33 

Stone,  Reverend  Mr.,  195  and  note  1 
Strachey,  Sir  Henry,  378  and  note 
Streton,  Harry,  14 
Streton,  General  John,  235,  251-2 
Stroud,  305,  306 
Swinden,  Reverend  Samuel,  10,  11,  12, 

28,  103,  123,  171,  506 
Swinden,  Susannah,  171  note  1 
Sydney,  Lord,  295 

Temple,  Lord,  415,  416,  508 

Temple,  Sir  Richard,  4 

Thierry,  pilot,  331 J 

Thionville,  127,  129 

Thompson,  Bradwardine,  211,  285 

Thompson,  Edward  Tindal,  1,  352,  353, 

354 
Thompson,  Frances,  101 
Thomson,  Alexander,  58 
Thornhill,  Mrs.,  239 
Thornton,  Captain,  85 
Thucydides,  165-6,  167 


Ticonderoga,  346,  394,  402,  403,  405,  421, 
422,  429,  443 

Tournay,  49 

Townshend,  Charles,  447,  506 

Townshend,  George  (afterwards  Lord), 
34,  409,  413,  414,  441,  447,  448  and 
note  1,  449,  450,  451,  456,  457,  458, 
459,  462,  468,  471  note  2,  476,  479,  480, 
484,  486,  488,  490,  491,  495  and  note, 
496,  497,  498,  499 

Townshend,  Henry,  295 

Townshend,  Thomas,  295 

Trapaud,  Colonel,  124,  180,  245-6,  254, 
255 

Traverse,  424 

Tren,  Ensign,  466 

Tuileries  gardens,  186 

Turpin,  Comte  de,  295  and  note  1 

Twelfth  Foot  (Duroure's),  Wolfe  ap- 
pointed to,  16,  18  ;  at  Dettingen,  35, 
38  ;  43,  49-50,  51 

Twentieth  Regiment  (Lancashire  Fusi- 
liers), Wolfe  appointed  to,  87  ;  88,  98, 
99,  107,  119,  124,  210,  211,  215,  220, 
223,  224,  229-30,  248,  258,  259,  293, 
301,  358,  399 

Tyrawley,  Lord,  107,  132  note  1,  294  and 
note  1 

Tyrconnel,  2  note  1 

Umbrellas,  194  and  note  1 

Vanbrugh,  Lady,  132  and  note  1 
Vaudreuil,  Marquis  de,  355,  436,   440, 

444,  445,  459,  476,  477,  489,  511 
Vergor,  475 

Vernon,  Admiral,  11,  12,  332 
Versailles,  197 
Vigo,  St.,  70  note  1 
Virginians,  Thackeray's,  6 
Voltaire,  168 

Wade,  Marshal   4,  42,  44,  45,  47,  52,  54, 

55,  87,  215 
Waldegrave,  General,  341 
Wales,  Princess  of,  78 
Walpole,  Horace,  188,  297,  308,  322,  323, 

500-1 
Walpole,  Sir  Robert,  1,  10,  11,  17,  311, 

329 
Warde,    Lieuten ant-General  George,   9, 

10,  11,  13,  15,  16,  18,  22,  23,  25,  130, 

272,  406,  409-10  and  notes  1  and  2, 

483,  501,  607 
Warde,  John,  9,  16,  87  note  1,  137,  601 
Warde,  Miss,  11,  25,  43,  77,  160 
Warde,  Sir  Patience,  9 
Warwick,  222 
Warwick  Castle,  223 
Washington,  George,  260,  345 
Watson,    Quartermaster-General   David, 

69  and  Twte  1,  215,  322,  349       .^ 


INDEX 


521 


"Webb,  General,  346 

Wellington,  Duke  of,  224,  415 

West,  Admiral,  271 

Westerham,  1,  5,  6,  237,  238,  501,  507-8 

Westminster  Abbey,  500 

Westminster  Bridge,  31,  145 

Whetham,  John,  188  note  1,  189,  190, 
195,  197,  205,  233 

Whitchurch,  237 

White,  Eleanor,  335 

White's  Club,  55,  400 

White  ford.  Sir  J.,  113 

Whitmore,  Brigadier,  347,  358,  363,  364, 
370,  372,  382,  390,  398,  425,  430,  432 

Wight,  Isle  of,  12,  13,  323 

Wilkinson,  Major,  157,  211 

Wilkinson,  Mrs.,  155 

William  III,  2  twte  1 

Williamson,  Colonel,  494  and  note  1 

Wilmot,  Mrs.,  169 

Wilson,  Captain,  115 

Wilton,  Joseph,  507 

Winchester,  258,  263 

Wolfe,  General  Edward  (father),  1,  2,  4, 
10,  12,  14,  21,  42,  70,  85,  96,  113, 
115,  147,  148,  149-50,  173,  184,  185, 
191,  201,  208,  212  and  owte  1,  240, 
241,  247,  250,  279,  283,  284,  308,  310, 
314,  337-8,  344,  351,  399,  400  ;  death, 
426,  427,  504 

Wolfe,  Lieutenant  Edward  (brother),  6,  8, 
9,  10,  22,  23,  24,  25,  26-8,  35,  38,  42  j 
death,  46,  47,  51 

Wolfe,  Captain  Edward  (grandfather),  2 
and  notes  1  and  3 

Wolfe,  Francis,  3 

Wolfe,  George  (SheriflF),  2  and  note  3 

Wolfe,  Captain  George,  2,  3 

Wolfe,  Mrs.  Henrietta,  1,  4-5,  6,  7,  12, 
13,  16,  70,  105,  106  and  note,  127, 129, 
137,  149,  178,  185,  199,  267,  268,  269, 
272,  273,  276,  301-2,  317-18,  351-2, 
501,  503,  504 ;  death,  506-7 

Wolfe,  James,  ancestry,  parentage  and 
bii-th,  1-6 ;  boyhood  at  Westerham 
and  Greenwich,  7-11  ;  volunteers  for 
service  in  the  West  Indies,  12 ;  in 
camp  at  Newport,  Isle  of  Wight,  13  ; 
falls  ill  and  returns  to  school,  14-15  ; 
Second  Lieutenant  in  Marines,  15 ; 
Ensign  in  Twelfth  Foot,  16  ;  sails  for 
Flanders,  18  ;  life  in  Ghent,  19-25  ; 
march  to  Aschaffenburg,  25-32  ;  fights 
at  Dettingen,  33-39 ;  promoted  for 
conduct  on  field  of  battle,  39  ;  in 
camp  at  Worms,  40-1  ;  winters  at 
Ostend,  42-3 ;  Captain  in  Fourth 
Foot,  44  ;  with  Marshal  Wade's  troops 
at  Berlingham,  44-6  ;  winters  at 
Ghent,  47-60 ;  Brigade-major,  51  ; 
Jacobite  rising  causes  recall  of  regi- 
ment,  52 ;    stationed    at  Newcastle, 


52-4  ;  at  battle  of  Falkirk,  55-7  ; 
aide-de-camp  to  General  Hawley,  58  ; 
unpleasant  encounter  with  Jacobite 
lady  at  Aberdeen,  58-60  ;  at  battle  of 
CuUoden,  60-66  ;  repressive  measures 
round  Inverness,  67-9  ;  sails  for 
Holland,  71  ;  wounded  at  battle  of 
LaflFeldt,  75-7  ;  invalided  home,  77  ; 
returns  to  Holland,  78  ;  in  camp  at 
Osterhout  and  Nesselroy,  78-86  ; 
relations  with  Elizabeth  Lawson,  78, 
87,  93,  111,  113-4,  115-6,  137,  147 
and  note  1,  198,  200,  203,  219,  237, 
238,  306-7  ;  gazetted  Major  in  Twen- 
tieth Regiment,  87-9  ;  life  in  Glasgow, 
89-109  ;  in  Perth,  110-132  ;  Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel,  118  ;  Dundee,  133-6 ; 
season  of  dissipation  in  London,  137-8, 
144  ;  strained  relations  with  parents, 
137,  145-150;  Banff,  138-154;  In- 
verness, 154-179  ;  Fort  Augustus, 
179-81  ;  travels  in  Ireland,  182-4 ; 
visits  Paris,  185-210  ;  Glasgow,  210- 
220  ;  march  to  Dover,  220-5  ;  stationed 
at  Dover,  225-36  ;  Exeter,  239-59  ; 
disappointed  of  colonelcy,  258-9 ; 
Winchester,  258-68,  277-9  ;  South- 
ampton, 268-76  ;  Canterbury,  279-91  ; 
Devizes,  293-300  ;  Stroud,  305-11 ; 
Cirencester,  311-17  ;  Quartermaster- 
General  of  Ireland,  315  ;  preparations 
for  Rochefort  expedition,  319-25 ; 
failure  and  returns  to  England,  328- 
333,  335-7,  338-40  ;  Colonel,  337,  384  ; 
evidence  before  Board  of  Inquiry  into 
the  Rochefort  expedition,  341-2  ;  ap- 
pointed Brigadier  in  America,  346-51  ; 
courtship  of  Katherine  Lowther,  237, 
348,  350,  406,  417,  483;  seven  weeks  at 
sea,  362  ;  preparations  at  Halifax, 
363-70  ;  siege  and  capture  of  Louis- 
bourg,  372-89  ;  urges  an  attack  on 
Quebec,  393-4  ;  devastates  French 
settlements,  396-7  ;  voyage  to  Eng- 
land, 397-8  ;  offers  to  return  to 
America,  400-1,  403,  433-4  ;  at  Salis- 
bury, 401-5  ;  appointed  to  command 
Quebec  expedition,  406  ;  plan  of  attack, 
407-8,  420-2,  427-9  ;  Major-General, 
410;  choice  of  staff,  410-11,  413, 
430-1  ;  episode  at  a  dinner  with  Pitt, 
415-7  ;  voyage  to  Halifax,  419-23  ; 
complains  of  lack  of  troops,  424-5, 
427  ;  preparations  at  Louisbourg,  427- 
431  ;  voyage  to  Quebec,  431-8  ;  pro- 
clamations to  inhabitants,  439-40,  453  ; 
strained  relations  with  Townshend, 
447-50,  484,  486  ;  communications 
with  Montcalm,  450,  452,  453  ;  re- 
verse at  Montmorenci,  453-63  ;  down 
with  fever,  464-72  ;  his  last  dispatch, 
472-5  J    plans    an    attack    from   the 


522 


INDEX 


Plains  of  Abraham,  475-82  ;  makes 
preparations  for  death,  483-4  ;  friction 
with  his  Brigadiers,  484-6  ;  crosses 
the  St.  Lawrence,  486-8  ;  battle  of 
Quebec,  490-6  ;  wounded,  493-4  ; 
death,  494  ;  attempts  to  belittle  his 
share  in  the  victory,  497-9  ;  nation's 
gratitude,  500-1 ;  remains  brought  to 
England  and  buried  at  Greenwich, 
601-2 ;  monument  in  "Westminster 
Abbey,  507 ;  memorials  in  Boston 
and  New  York,  501,  in  England  and 
Canada,  507-8. 

Personal  traits. — Appearance,  at 
twenty-six,  225,  at  twenty-eight,  275, 
276  ;  5,  102,  246-7  ;  books,  favourite, 
165-6, 168,  295-7  ;  chess-player,  166  ; 
children,  a  lover  of,  160-1  ;  dancing, 
indulges  in,  187,  191,  194,  200,  242, 
266  ;  dogs,  his,  237,  251,  261,  262,  272, 
343  ;  faults  of  character,  414-5  ;  fenc- 
ing, practises,  187,  191,  201-2  ;  flute, 
learns,  21,  22  ;  impetuosity,  403  riote  ; 
independence,  66,  433-4  ;  health,  ill-, 
85,  100,  101,  104,  117,  124,  128,  138, 
150-1,  211,  247,  264,  266,  400-1, 
403,  405,  464  ;  kindness  to  his  men, 
209,  228,  426,  435  notCy  483  note  1, 
491  ;  sensitiveness,  448  note  ;  sport, 
fond  of,  103,  107,  127,  157,  174,  182, 
222,  228,  275. 

Letters  to :— his  father,  30,  36,  40, 
71,  78,  80,  95,  98,  101,  104,  107,  112, 

115,  117,  120,  121, 124,  125,  126,  130, 
136,  145,  149,  155,  156,  163,  167, 
169,  174,  176,  179, 182,  186,  188, 192, 
196,  198,  201,  204,  206,  210,  213, 
216,  217,  219,  221,  223,  226,  231, 
234,  238,  240,  242,  247,  249,  255, 
260,  263,  266,  272,  274,  277,  281,  287, 
288,  292,  294,  300,  302,  309,  314,  317, 
318,  319,  328,  333,  337,  338,  348, 
361,  362,  365,  383,  392,  396,  399, 
406;  his  mother,  13,  21,  23,  24,  25, 
46,  49,  63,  82,  85,  89,  96,  100,  102, 
105,      107,     108,     110,     111,      114, 

116,  118,   122,   125,    128,    129,    131, 


136,  148,  151,  163,  158,  161,  164, 
282,  284,  287,  290,  292,  294,  299, 
301,  304,  307,  309,  316,  318,  324, 
326,  336,  341,  342,  347,  349,  353, 
364,  361,  382,  396,  398,  420,  468  ; 
his  brother,  42  ;  Jeffrey  Amherst,  376, 
378,  379,  381,  394,  396,  426 ;  William 
Amherst,  386  ;  Lord  Harrington,  433  ; 
Duke  of  Bedford,  315,  323,  352  ; 
Colonel  Burton,  477  ;  Major  Delabene, 
62  ;  Captain  Hamilton,  68,  69  ;  Lord 
Holdemess,  472 ;  Miss  Lacey,  72,  73  ; 
Captain  Martin,  412 ;  Brigadier 
Monckton,  466,  485  ;  Major  Murray, 
412  ;  Captain  Parr,  31  ;  William  Pitt, 
400,  407,  423,  431,  454,  469  ;  Major 
Rickson,  92,  133,  138,  139,  245,  252, 
269,  321,  339,  349,  402  ;  Lord  George 
Sackville,  365,  360,  363,  366,  387  ; 
Yice- Admiral  Saunders,  460  ;  William 
Sotheron,  66,  65 ;  George  Town- 
shend,  414,  486  ;  Thomas  Townshend, 
295  ;  Lieutenant-General  Warde,  354, 
369,  406,  409  ;  Brigadier  Whitmore, 
430 ;  Major  Walter  Wolfe,  336,  360, 
384,  399,  417,  427 
Wolfe,  James,  Bailiff  of  Limerick,  2 
Wolfe,  Major  Walter,  47  and  '>iote  1, 
82,  122,  167,  171,  183,  184,  195, 
248,  249,  335,  483 
Wolfe-Aylward,    Mr.    Alexander,     272 

note  2 
Wolfe-Landy  Mr.  Gibson  Thompson's,  6 
Wolfe-Murray,  Sir  James,  171  note  1 
Wolfenbuttel,  Prince  of,  78 
Wolfe's  Cove,  see  Ansa  du  Foulon 
Worms,  40,  42 


Xenophon,  380 


York,  6,  136 

Yorke,  Colonel,  79,  84, 

Ypres,  44 

Zisca,  296  and  note  1 


Richard  Clay  &  Sons,  Limited. 

bkkad  street  hill,  b.c.,  and 

bungay,  sdftolk. 


y^ 


t^